Entwined Fates
by MorganRay
Summary: AU: After Mamoru is taken by Beryl, Rei offers a prayer, which leads to a revelation about the Dark Kingdom. How did Metalia recruit her army? What secrets of the Moon kingdom have been labeled taboo? Rei/Jedite R
1. Window to the Past

**Entwined Fates **

**By Morgan Ray**

Between Episode 35 and 36: After Mamoru is taken, Rei offers a pray, which leads to a revelation about the Dark Kingdom. How did Metalia recruit her army? What secrets of the Moon kingdom have been labeled taboo?

Prologue:

**A Window to the Past**

The sun sank across the roofs of the spirals, turning their brass tips the color of ripened plums. The tall buildings of church and government caught the last rays of a dying sun, which cast an almost surreal purple sunset over the sprawling city cradled in between a crown of mountains. While the steeples sparkled at the end of the day, the brown mountains appeared tainted with crimson blood as the purple light struck their barren, wasted peaks that rose up like gnarled talons.

At the window of one of the ornate buildings,which shot out of the dirty mass of concrete hovels in the city, stood a man no older than eighteen. The purple rays of last light struck his blond locks as he leaned his head against the window pain, dreaming wistfully of days long ago drifted into the distant past of his homeland. The orchid light appeared to give his usually translucent, sea foam green eyes a tint like a lilac when it first burst forth from its blossom.

The door at the other end of the study clicked open and swung slowly inward as another young man entered the room. The dust seemed stirred by the presence of the new youth, and the books and yellowed papers stacked on the shelves and singular desk in the room seemed to breathe off their dust as he crossed the ornate red rug to stand by the youth at the window.

For several moments, both men stood in silence as the purple light danced across the long, golden locks of the new man and tinted his emerald eyes the color of damp, moldy tree bark. Both men were dressed similarly, but the blond man wore a simpler traveling cloak of coarser, brown fabric with an eloquent black doublet and matching pair of softer, cotton pants underneath it. The man with shimmering, golden tresses was dressed in a navy doublet embroidered with a simple Celtic design, and he worse a pair of black trousers, also.

"Is it true?" the blond finally asked hesitantly. "Is Anaximander being called by Kunzite now?"

"Yes, I heard you called for me," the other man replied, but not directly to the blond, at firstk before he uttered in an almost undetectable voice, "Yes, Kunzite is now his name."

"So these rumors are true?" the blond seethed under his breath.

"I'm afraid so," the long haired man said with a huge sigh of regret. The blond slowly turned to face his friend and ripped himself out of his private reverie. He gazed steadily at his friend's remorseful emerald eyes as the last rays of the violet sunset struck them.

"He really has turned? What's the cause?" the blond asked slowly and continued to study the sharp, sparkling emerald eyes that gazed back at him.

"He swore allegiance to Metalia," the man replied and his green eyes radiated a slight spark as he spoke the word Metalia. The blond youth's facial features became distorted in a scowl as he slammed his fist into the windowsill as he continued to stare doggedly at his friend.

"I heard rumors whispering along the streets of this devil, Metalia, but I hoped somebody might want to give me a real reason why Anaximander, who always has been loyal to us, decided to make this sudden switch," the blond seethed at his friend. "I thought you knew something? I thought you were going to tell me something?"

"Yes, yes, I am, but I didn't know what you'd already heard," the golden hair man told the other frustrated man as he extended his hands in a gesture of peace. "I've heard of the devil, also, but I think Anaximander found his offer very appealing."

"What offer?" the blond exclaimed in frustration. He threw his hands up in the air and took a step forward to the other man. "Tell me! I will beat some sense into him!"

"Will you?" the other man asked mockingly as he let a smirk slid over his features. "Come, come, why don't we all take new names?"

"What?" the blond exclaimed and now withdrew across the room from the other man as if he'd put a viper in his hand. "_Treason_."

"A change of heart," the man with long, golden hair said as the door once again moved and a tall man with an imposing aura entered the room with a quick step. The moment he entered, he gently shut the door without even stirring the thick layers of dust on the carpet, and his steely, icy blue eyes bored into the blond youth, who looked torn between charging at the well-dressed man and backing up into the bookshelf.

"Evening," the man replied as he smoothed a couple strands of silver hair from his face. His pale skin, from hours of studying in old libraries, seemed to evoke the image of a phantom, and he wore a long, slate blue velvet cloak and a gray velvet doublet and a matching pair of pants. Slowly, a small smile slid across his face as he looked at the horrified blond.

"_Traitor_," the blond hissed as he shot a look over at the golden hair man for aid. However, a slow, malicious smile spread over the face of his green eyed comrade as he exchanged a look with his blond friend.

"I said it was all time for us to change our names," the man with emerald eyes said and chuckled. The blond's face blanched the shade of sour milk as he turned to look for an escape, but finding none, charged the tall figure clad in gray.

"Anaximander!" He shouted vengefully, but Anaximander quickly clamped his mouth shut and threw him against the wall, where he struggled and several books toppled off the shelves with a splash of dust as they hit the ground. The golden haired man came over and tilted the blond's head towards his mouth.

"I changed my name, too, friend," the golden man whispered in the blond's ear as his emerald eyes glinted with pleasure. "I'm Zoisite now."

The blond's eyes became livid, and they seemed to take on the ferocious appearance of a furious animal. As he struggled, the golden man chuckled and shoved the blond's head backwards, and yet, his body was still wracked with convulsions as Anaximander's velvety base voice told him, "You will join us. Metalia needs you. Keep still."

However, the blond convulsed his entire body with the effort to break the steady hold of the two men. He strained his eyes forward to try and get a glimpse of what Anaximander withdrew from his coat, but a flash seemed to erupt in front of his eyes and splinter his vision into a thousand pieces, and then he knew no more.

A/N: This is MorganRay here with her first Sailor Moon fic that just won't leave me brain. I had to write it down, get it out, so here the beginning of hopefully a new, exciting piece of MorganRay work is. I hope everyone's bright enough to figure out who is in this chapter. Do you have a better idea for a summary? I'm taking suggestions . . . now. I don't like my summary, but the title is something I think will work for this story. Any suggestions? I'm open to many ideas for this story, although it's taking place in the first real season because that's my favorite. What I'm doing with this is:

Going from the TV version (the anime) not the manga version of Sailor Moon because I heard they're different. Well, I like the Rainbow crystals and they'll play a part in this.

Using the Japanese names because they're what I've read a lot of fanfiction with, and I think it's appropriate to use them. I'll try and get the Japanese version of the attacks, too, but if they're wrong, correct me, please.

Thanks, MorganRay


	2. A Prayer for Strength

Chapter Two:

** A Prayer for Strength**

The day seemed dark, even at noon, as the sky looked swollen with rain like a mother cow about to birth. The little blossoms, the gentle color of a woman's lips, swung in the breeze as the storm approached. Above the Shinto shrine, two crows called out raucously in the coming gale from their posts on the brown roof. A young girl about the age of sixteen ran towards the door of the shrine, her crimson _hakama_ billowing around her legs and slowing her progress. She raised a hand above her head to shield her face from the treacherous winds, and the storm tugged at her baggy kimono shirt the color of pure, white snow. Her ebony hair contrasted with her glaringly white kimono top like night would contrast with day, and the young woman struggled to the door and pushed it open just as the rain pelted the earth like bullets.

"Uh," Rei muttered as her almond eyes surveyed the water driving in sheets of stinging ice across the stone pavilion outside their shrine. With a distinctive frown, she turned and went inside, shutting the door to the chilly air the afternoon storm had brought with it. The inside of the shrine had only a couple candles lit, and the pounding of the relentless rain made Rei slightly uneasy because she'd never liked getting wet, even when she was a little girl.

Slowly, she walked over and took one of the candles, which was sitting on a shelf, with her along the hallways that were silent and dark. She knew her grandfather and Yuuichirou were out on errands during the afternoon, which she would've normally completed. However, Rei had been with Usagi yesterday and made sure she at least woke up after their fight against the Dark Kingdom, where Kunzite had taken the opportunity to knock Rei around.

Rei rubbed her aching temples, hardly believing the past couple days had honestly happened and weren't just some terrible, warped dream. Not only was Usagi their princess, but they were all the reincarnated forms of some ladies from the Moon Kingdom, which existed over a thousand years ago. It all seemed impossible to Rei that she shared a spirit with a girl who was long dead, yet at the same time, Rei did believe in reincarnation, but this even boggled her mind. Why was it her destiny to live this life?

"I won't back away," Rei muttered to herself. No, she told herself, she wouldn't become frightened and give up and whine like a petulant child like Usagi had done. She was Sailor Mars, the strong one, not Sailor Moon, who although their princess, still acted like she was a small toddler at times.

As Rei entered one of the backrooms in the shrine, she sat on the floor and crossed her legs to meditate. However, the rain seemed to interrupt her thoughts, and the lingering sorrows in her heart called to her like ghosts in the darkness. She could see them, in her mind, taking Tuxedo Kamen away with them into the darkness that seemed to wrap its arms around her soul now. Rei shivered, as she could imagine what they might do to him. Would they torture him or even kill him? In her heart, Rei realized that Mamoru was theirs, also, and her liking for the handsome boy caused her stomach to ache.

"I'll be strong," Rei muttered as she squinted her eyes closed, feeling the emptiness of the shrine around her, and in the deepest, most raw parts of her heart, being this lonely terrified her. She could hear the pounding rain drilling into the roof, and yet, in here, there was only darkness.

Rei opened her eyes and stood up and cast some salt into the little fire of the candle, which roared and blazed as it hit the flames. She watched the shapes flicker before her eyes, and her heart sank as she observed the flames, which only told her suffering was ahead of her.

"_Kami_, give me strength," Rei whispered to the darkness, although she believed stubbornly that her god would hear her. "Let the path be shown, let strength be sent to us. Show us the way to defeat this evil which consumes all in shadow."

Rei's words ended in a whisper just as the light from the candle flickered and died. In the darkness, Rei stood, alone, and let a tear slide down her cheek. No one could see her cry in the dark when she was alone.

------------

Almost halfway across Tokyo, where neon lights reflected off the rain drenched sidewalks, strode another girl. She was shorter in stature than Rei, but unlike her miko friend, she walked openly in the storm and let the rain drench her black, knee length skirt, and blue sweater that she wore over her white, silken long sleeved blouse. Ami lifted her head up to the sky and let the rain pour across her skin and drench her raven colored, bob cut hair.

The heavens had opened up today, to Ami's delight, and her trip to the bookstore had become a pleasurable one when the clouds had birthed their water onto her head. While others ran pell-mell towards shelter, Ami had ambled in the storm, allowing the sky's own tears to wash away her pain. The pain of battle scarred the inside of the Mercury senshi, yet when it rained, she felt elated, and today, she let the gods above weep for the sorrows that were sure to come.

Ami fixed her eyes back on the street again and stared in the window of the arcade as she passed by it, and there, she noticed Usagi, Makoto, and Minako sitting at a table chatting with each other and sipping drinks. For a moment, Ami considered going inside the Crown Center Video Arcade, but then, she abruptly decided to continue down the street, and fixed her gaze once again upwards and let the chilly rain clean her body and soul.

Then, Ami collided with another person and slid on her heals, which caused her to spin in a circle, drop all her books, and fall flatly on the concrete. Ami blinked the rain and actual tears that had gathered in her eyes from the fall away before finding out exactly who she'd slammed into during her private reverie. Yumemi, with her thick, chestnut colored braids dripping with water like a wet rope, sat staring stupidly over at Ami, and was also sopping wet and clutching her sketchbook to her chest.

"Yumemi!" Ami exclaimed as she raised herself off the saturated ground and helped the other girl to her feet. "I'm so sorry! Are you okay?"

"Fine, fine," Yumemi muttered as a gentle smile crawled across her lips. "You dropped your books. Do I know you?"

"My friend Usagi modeled for you," Ami explained. "But it's cold, and do you want to go inside? Usagi is in an arcade down the street with some friends . . ."

"No, that's a nice offer, but my studio is just a couple buildings down the street," Yumemi replied with a gentle smile as she walked past Ami. Ami turned around and stared after the petit, unassuming artist. She knew the girl had carried one of the rainbow crystals, and Ami wondered how she was doing now that she saw her walking away in the torrential down pour. It wasn't fair, Ami thought bitterly, what had happened to those seven who carried the crystals. Her heart ached when she thought of Ryo, and Ami raced down the street to catch Yumeni without thinking twice.

"Wait," Ami panted as she caught up to the other girl. Yumemi turned and gave her a questioning stare as she let Ami fall into pace with her. "Would it be okay if I come and see your studio?"

"Your friends?" Yumemi asked as the two girls continued to stride down the street together. "I thought you were going . . ."

"Well, I was, but I thought you might like some company, although I don't model," Ami said and laughed at the very thought of her striking a pose. _What a riot that would be_, Ami thought as she looked over Yumemi. It was strange, since she never had really seen the girl, and Usagi had explained how she was afraid of being called ugly. _Well_, Ami decided, _she's prettier than I am, that's for sure._

"Sure," Yumemi replied amiably as the two reached the locked door to Yumemi's art studio. The artist pulled a key out of her pocket and turned the lock, and Yumemi politely ushered Ami into the room first. Ami stepped inside and became overwhelmed by the stench of paint fumes. She coughed slightly as Yumemi came inside and locked the door behind her. There was a blind pulled in front of the window, which Yumemi promptly opened, and Ami noticed she wasn't planning on turning on the lights.

"You paint in the dark?" Ami asked as she watched Yumemi pull an oil painting from the back of the room and gather her brushes from shelves. She grabbed a bottle of turpentine, also, to rinse her brushes in later along with several rags.

"I'm painting a scene in the rain. I liked to look at the rain in natural light, that's all," Yumemi explained as she set up her easel and began to paint what Ami realized was a version of the building across the street.

"It looks very real," Ami commented.

"It's not done yet," Yumemi replied as she continued to apply paint carefully, trying her hardest to make the painting as realistic as possible.

"Hmm, do you mind if I look around?" Ami asked, and Yumemi nodded her assent as she became completely absorbed in her painting. Ami studied the many sketches of various models of Yumemi's that lined the walls. Ami noticed some of these people appeared later in her oil paintings. Then, Ami spotted a picture of Usagi and Mamoru that Yumemi had done, Ami thought, probably not too long ago. Seeing Mamoru caused Ami to frown as she stared back at his face, which with a mask on, was the face of Tuxedo Kaman. _We failed him_, Ami realized as she stared up at the young man.

"Do you usually invite yourself into someone's place?" Yumemi asked as Ami prowled around the studio and stared at the paintings on easels and adorning almost every inch of the gray walls.

"No, usually never, but Usagi said so many good things about you, I was excited to meet you," Ami told Yumemi a half-truth as she walked over to the girl sitting at the window. _Well, I was excited to see her_, Ami told herself as she watched the girl paint before she raised her head and stared out the window. The day was still overcast, and the thundering rain seemed to bleed the color out of everything.

"Really?" Yumemi asked as she turned to look up at Ami. "What did she say?"

"She really liked your work of her, and she said you're a nice person," Ami responded, and felt relieved she was actually telling the truth. _Well, she did say both of those things,_ Ami thought as she watched Yumemi's surprised expression.

"That's very nice of her," Yumemi replied as she turned back to her artwork. "How is Mamoru? He was a very nice model."

"He's . . . not feeling well, he told us last, when he went out of town," Ami hesitantly offered up a plausible lie to Yumemi. _He wasn't feeling well, and he definitely is out of town_, Ami told herself as she watched Yumemi continue to paint.

"That's a shame," Yumemi said as she concentrated on the one part of her painting while taking frequent glances up at the window.

"Is it okay if I sit down and read?" Ami asked as she walked over to another spot where she could still get light.

"Sure, I'll be here a while," Yumemi replied as Ami pulled up a chair by the window and opened a book to study. _Physics tests can't wait_, Ami thought as she began to read. For another hour, the pair sat in silence, each concentrating on their own unique interest. When the rain let up to a bare drizzle, Yumemi dipped her brushed in the turpentine and stood up, walked across the room, and then stared intently at her painting.

"Is it done?" Ami asked as she laid her book down on the chair and went to study the painting, too. "Oh," Ami gasped as she stared at how the painting captured the way the storm seemed to erase all color from the world and leave it in drab shades of blue and gray.

"You like it?" Yumemi asked as she continued to gaze at her finished work.

"Yes, a lot," Ami said as Yumemi began to clean up her supplies. Ami gathered her books together and waited for the artist to finish tidying up her studio and draw the blinds. Both girls walked out into the light sprinkle that was left of the huge downpour earlier.

"Do you feel like going with me now?" Ami asked, not entirely sure why she suddenly wanted to spend so much time with the girl. _Is all this because I feel sorry for her?_ Ami wondered to herself. _I'm probably annoying her_, Ami thought regretfully as she went to tell Yumemi she was sorry for intruding on her life like this.

"No, that would be nice," Yumemi commented and a soft, pleasant smile slid over her face. "I don't go many places like arcades. No one invites me."

"Consider this an official invite," Ami said buoyantly as the pair proceeded on their way to the Crown Center Video Arcade. As they strode along, Ami felt a tingle shoot down her spine like a jolt of electricity. She froze as Yumemi continued to walk down the sidewalk.

"Ami?" Yumemi asked when she realized the other girl stood stock still a few meters behind her. "Are you coming?"

Then, a bolt of dark lightening shot like a whip, latched onto Yumemi's waist before she could cry out, and drug her into the alley it had shot out from. "No!" Ami shouted and brought out her communicator.

"Hurry!" Ami shouted as she ducked into another side street. She checked around quickly before shouting, "Mercury Power, Make Up!"

Without another hesitation, Mercury charged over to the adjoining alley that seemed to be only like the gap between two front teeth because it was so narrow. As Mercury ran down it to reach the end, where she heard Yumemi shriek, she realized there was only room for two skinny people to get down there. _It's as good a trap as any ambush_, Mercury realized as she approached the end, where she saw Yumemi gagged and propped against the back wall behind the towering figure of Kunzite. Mercury gasped as she realized Yumemi was bleeding from a knife gash in her arm.

"Shabon Spray!" Mercury shrieked, but Kunzite easily deflected her attack. He grinned maliciously at her, but didn't move to attack.

"Shabon Spray!" Mercury shouted again, trying to wear down the arrogant general. However, Kunzite once again easily deflected her assault, but now, an annoyed look played through his steely eyes colder than any ice.

"Don't waste your energy," he told her in his velvety, deep voice. "I'm not here for you."

"Let her go!" Mercury hollered as she prepared to attack again. Then, she heard footsteps thundering along the pavement behind her.

"Finally," Kunzite muttered as Venus, Jupiter, and Sailor Moon reached Mercury. Jupiter shoved her to the side as she charged at Kunzite, who narrowed his eyes as she prepared to attack.

"Supreme Thunder!" Jupiter shouted as she launched her attack at Kunzite, who shot a dark, crackling blast of his own, which stopped Jupiter's offensive.

"In the name of the Moon, I'll punish you!" Sailor Moon yelled as she cut her way in front of Mercury to get a quality shot at Kunzite, who eyed up the Moon senshi with frozen, calculating eyes.

"Fine then, do it," Kunzite replied as he watched Sailor Moon draw the moon stick, where the ginzuishou sparkled like a star fallen from heaven. Kunzite's eyes were drawn immediately to the jewel that cast its own ethereal light around the crammed alley.

"Moon Healing Escalation!" Sailor Moon shouted as Mercury watched her shimmer like a jewel herself as the energy poured out of the tiny jewel towards Kunzite. However, the General held up his right hand and a tiny black shard no bigger than a pinkie finger caught the attack. Now, the shard gleamed the color of the silver moon, but the shard was still black.

Then, without a word, Kunzite threw the shard into Yumemi, who shrieked as the jagged piece of crystal entered through her stomach. Kunzite leapt up in a flash of gray and black, apparently gone from the scene as Yumemi began to scream.

In one horrible moment, Mercury watched as the small, petit figure of the young artist began to writhe on the ground and loose her shape. Her skin tone became the color of moss, while her back arched upwards and Mercury heard her bones begin to crack and reform.

"This didn't happen before," Mercury muttered and pulled her computer out to study the horrific scene unfolding in front of the four senshi. "It was just a haze of black before anyone changed, as if their real bodies were swallowed up by the dark energy, but her body actually seems to be changing."

"Explain that later," Jupiter growled as she turned to Sailor Moon. "Use your wand! Do it before we have to fight them both!"

"Both?" Sailor Moon asked as she stared at Yumemi, who let out a gut wrenching scream as a pair of opal colored wings formed from her shoulder blades and tore through her shirt. Mercury watched as the girl's body became taller, thinner, and she utterly became unable to wear her human clothing as long, sparkling claws sprouted from her nimble, bony fingers and toes, which now looked more bird's claws.

"Kunzite's still around!" Jupiter shouted as she pointed at the creature in front of them. "Do it!"

"Moon Healing Escalation!" Sailor Moon shouted as she aimed her beam of light straight and true at the youma that was letting out blood curdling yelps. As the radiant ray of silver light struck the youma it let out one final wail before it stopped moving.

"What?" Mercury asked in absolute shock as she watched a thin pale human hand separate itself from the talons of the youma. The four girls gasped as the form of Yumemi pulled itself completely free from the form of the youma, which remained immobile on the concrete.

"Are you okay?" Venus asked as she walked over to the shaky girl, who stood dumb struck and just stared down at her hands.

"What was that?" Jupiter asked the other two girls. Sailor Moon's jaw hung open as she gazed at the insane scene that had just taken place. _That's not natural_, Mercury thought as she scanned above them, trying to sense Kunzite.

"Kunzite's around here," Mercury muttered. "Don't do anything until we find him. He left us here because he thinks we'll play into his hand."

"Really?" Sailor Moon asked as Mercury walked over to examine the youma. _I don't think it's dead_, Mercury realized as she bent down and felt light breaths on her hand from unconscious creature.

"The youma isn't dead," Mercury confirmed, which caused Sailor Moon to let out a gasp of shock.

"Hit it again!" Jupiter exclaimed. "We've separated it from the girl, so it can be destroyed completely!"

"No, not yet, he wants us to do that," Mercury mused. _Why did Kunzite leave his youma? Why did he leave us Yumemi, too? What is he expecting us to do?_ Mercury wondered as she gazed down at the limp figure of the monster.

"Yumemi, are you okay?" Venus asked the shocked girl. Mercury looked up at Yumemi, who raised her one arm above her to study it. Venus touched the girl's wrist, but Yumemi abruptly brushed her hand off.

"I'm better than ever," Yumemi said in a low voice and chuckled. "Actually, senshi, this is the best time I've ever had!"

"Yumemi?" Sailor Moon asked nervously. _She's not herself_, Mercury realized with horror. Then, Yumemi drew her hand back and shot a searing hot energy blast at Venus, who shrieked and collapsed against the side of the alley.

"Look out!" Mercury shouted as Kunzite appeared behind Jupiter and Moon. As Kunzite went to attack, Jupiter jumped in front of Sailor Moon.

"Supreme Thunder!" Jupiter bellowed and succeeded in stopping Kunzite's attack. Mercury watched as the very distorted Yumemi curled her fists up to form another attack.

"Shabon Spray!" Mercury screamed as she jumped up and stopped the girl. For an instant, Mercury thought she killed her, but then, she watched as the girl staggered up after the attack, jumped the heads of the other two senshi and landed beside Kunzite.

"Ladies," the evil Yumemi said as Kunzite and her disappeared in a swish of black energy. Mercury looked up where the two had been, then gazed back down at the youma. _What did he do?_ Mercury wondered as she scanned the youma, hoping to figure out what happened.

Then, the creature's eyes shot open, and in a raspy voice the youma muttered, "Ami?"

A/N: _hakama: the pants a Shinto shrine assistant or miko wears_

_miko: A Shinto shrine assistant_

Yuuichirou (Chad)

_Kami (A common god prayed to in the Shinto religion)_

Yumemi (In episode 28, she was the artist with the green crystal)

ginzuishou (This is how I'm referring to the silver crystal throughout the story, just incase you didn't get that the ginzuishou is the silver crystal yet)

General Note: I'm using as much of the Japanese version as possible, which includes as many names as possible, too. So, for those who haven't seen this version, I'll add these little notes at the end. Anything not accurate? Any comments and suggestions? Anything? Please review, and thank you to those who have already helped me out, so I know who is reading at least. Thanks for your time, MorganRay


	3. Twisted Life

Chapter Three:

**Twisted Life**

The door to Ami's room clicked closed, and the sound echoed in the hallway where the very air seemed to be filled with an aura of anxiety. Silence hung from the plaster walls as the five senshi waited to hear Luna and Artemis's verdict on the situation. Rei had arrived late, and the five went back to Ami's home, with their sentient youma, because Ami's mother was still at the hospital.

"Well?" Makoto inquired of the two cats as they exchanged glances. Then, Luna stalked forward a couple steps and sat in front of the girls.

"The youma seems to be Yumemi," Luna told the girls in a solemn voice.

"How can that be?" Rei asked as she looked between the other senshi. "Tell me what happened because I don't remember that before."

"Ami, you were there first," Luna beckoned Ami to recite the order of events. Ami drew a breath and met Rei's intense stare.

"She was sucked into the alley," Ami began slowly and with a great effort to keep her voice steady. "Then, I transformed in another alley and found Yumemi gagged and bleeding from a gash on her arm behind Kunzite. I attacked, then, Jupiter attacked, and then, Sailor Moon attacked Kunzite, but he absorbed it in this crystal shard."

"A what? Like the rainbow crystals?" Rei asked in alarm. However, Ami simply shook her head at this remark to disconfirm it. Then, the hallway went quiet as Ami steadied herself to continue the series of events.

"It was black, and it shined silver when it absorbed the healing attack," Ami continued, but her voice cracked when she said, "He threw it into her stomach."

"It's okay, Ami, I'll tell it," Makoto offered, but Ami shook her head definitely.

"No, I will," Ami replied as she suppressed the quaver in her voice. "She changed, and Kunzite left. Sailor Moon attacked the youma, and it split in two, but Yumemi's form was able to attack and appeared obviously evil."

"It appears the entities switched places," Luna said. Usagi stared stupidly at her cat for a couple moments before Luna sighed and began to explain. "I mean I think that Yumemi's soul, mind, and heart were kept inside the form of the youma, but that the evil entity of the youma was able to leave in Yumemi's form."

"How? That never happened before," Rei remarked as she gazed between all the other senshi. The air hung so thick no one moved to answer Rei's plea, and she bit her lower lip in frustration.

"I don't know how they did it, and I don't know why the split didn't completely separate both entities because the ginzuishou was supposed to heal them!" Ami shouted in frustration. Minako came over and wrapped her arms around Ami's shoulder as a couple tears escaped her sparkling, ocean blue eyes. On her head Minako wore a bag of ice where she'd collided with the wall, but other than that, the senshi was fine now.

"Ami, it's not our fault," Minako said soothingly as she rubbed her hand gently across Ami's back like a mother would do to a child. "We won't let it happen again, I promise."

"How do we know that?" Makoto jutted into the pacifying effect of Minako's words. "We don't even know how they did that! It looked like they used the ginzuishou to fuel that crystal, if you ask me."

"You asked me to use it! You told me to use it _again_!" Usagi yelled as Makoto, and the two girls exchanged angry stares. Rei threw herself in between them before any more blows verbally or otherwise could be exchanged.

"It's done with!" Rei shouted as Makoto stood defiantly behind Rei while Usagi sulked off to the other side of the hallway. The silence hung over the hallway before being broken by the moaning coming from Ami's bedroom. Ami sniffled as the other senshi exchanged anxious glances.

"Why was Yumemi's . . . body okay, but the youma's . . . body isn't?" Minako asked hesitantly as she tried to phrase the question correctly.

"There could be a lot of reasons," Artemis began as he strode over to Minako and sat down by her feet. "I think maybe the ginzuishou's attack hurt the youma body but not the human one. Also, there's the possibility that . . . there's the possibility that Yumemi's soul is suffering from being inside the youma body."

"No!" Ami and Minako gasped at the same time. Usagi let out a straggled yelp, but Rei kept her eyes firmly focused on Artemis while Makoto glanced towards the door where another wail sounded from the other side.

"Why did the powers rub off?" Rei asked as she told herself to ignore the horrible sounds. "Shouldn't the youma have been stunned entering the human body?"

"Well, there was a moment there when I guess she, um, it was stunned," Minako replied hesitantly as she continued to sooth Ami, who's eyes were now filled with tears that dripped down her cheeks.

"The powers, well, I guess maybe because they split from the same body, but that's a guess," Ami mumbled as she wiped her eyes on Minako's sleeve. Minako didn't even seem to notice Ami's wet stain on her beautiful, purple sweater, which had cost Minako more yen than Ami's entire outfit.

"What do we do?" Usagi timidly asked the four other senshi and her guardians. "I mean, if that thing is really Yumemi or something, can we change her back?"

"I don't think we should try anything yet," Luna suggested as she walked over to Usagi. "I don't think we know what effect it will have considering the ginzuishou split severed her from her body."

As Luna spoke, another moan irrupted from Ami's bedroom, and Ami flinched at the sound. The hallways remained silent as the painful sounds hung in each of their memories, and they knew another screech would soon follow it. Luna, with great weight in her voice, spoke. "Staying like that might kill her."

"What?" Makoto asked, absolutely floored by Luna's statement. "We can't let her die! We're senshi, we just can't do that!"

"We'll see what happens to her condition by tomorrow," Artemis reassured the girls as he turned and padded over towards the door. "I think we should go in and see if she calms down. Makoto, maybe take Rei downstairs and prepare something to eat and drink."

With a deft nod, the two girls went down the steps to Ami's kitchen. The three other senshi exchanged nervous glances as Minako advanced towards the door first and opened it, where the full sound of the high pitched moan reached their ears without the barrier of the door. They'd laid the youma's body on its stomach, so the wings weren't crushed against the bed, and laid blankets over the back. However, the youma body had been tossing and turning in pain and the blankets had completely fallen off the top half of the body, and most of the blankets were on the floor except for the sheet, which was entangled around the lower half of the body. Ami stifled a sob as she watched the creature groan in agony.

"Yumemi?" Ami asked delicately as she stepped into the room. The youma's head turned, and the glistening, plum eyes focused on the three girls in the doorway. The mouth opened to speak, but then, another wail of pain escaped her lips.

Ami broke away from Minako and reached her bed, where she draped the blankets that had fallen on the floor back over the struggling creature. The creature's breathing was sporadic, but it looked up into Ami's eyes, and Ami bit her lip to quench her urge to cry. "Sorry, I should've warned you," Ami apologized sincerely as her eyes filled with tears.

"Here," Makoto offered a plate with a sandwich and soup when her and Rei appeared in the room. Rei handed a piece of the sandwich to Yumemi, who dropped it as she convulsed. She groaned as her breathing remained shallow and labored.

"What should we do?" Minako asked, feeling utterly helpless.

"I think you four should leave, and Artemis and I will stay with Ami," Luna suggested. "Leave the food, Makoto. We'll let you know tomorrow what's happening."

"Okay," Rei replied softly as she walked over and gave Ami's hand a reassuring squeeze before exiting the room, followed by Makoto, Usagi, and finally Minako. The four girls walked outside in silence, glad to be rid of the horrible sounds. When they had walked so far, Rei separated from the three and headed towards her shrine.

'_How horrible_,' Rei thought as she walked along the streets as the sun's last crimson rays streaked over the buildings. '_How can someone be so evil_,' Rei wondered as she thought about what Kunzite had done. Her heart ached for vengeance as she remembered the very painful sight of knowing the writhing creature in Ami's room was really a young girl.

'_I'll take my revenge_,' Rei vowed to herself as she passed beneath several trees still dripping from the day's rain. As Rei passed under their branches, she froze and a shiver shot up her spine.

"Who's there?" Rei asked apprehensively as she spun around and scanned the area. On Rei's side of the street, there were several shops that were closed for the evening. They look harmless enough, Rei thought, but then, she glanced across the street. An ominous, gray warehouse loomed like an eclipse over the opposite side of the street, and Rei felt a chill just looking at it with the boarded up windows and padlocked doors.

'_If there's something in there, I need to see it_,' Rei told herself as she raced across the street. She pressed against the side of the building, where the aura was so intense that the hair on the back of her neck stood on end. Rei leaned up on her tiptoes to peak in between a crack in the boards. There were skylights in the roof, so the last beams of daylight illuminated the rickety old boxes that were stacked up to the ceiling. Tires littered one side of the warehouse along with bundles of gray and black piping, but Rei spotted no signs of anything else with her eyes.

'_There's something in there_,' Rei thought as she felt the edginess in her gut intensify. '_If I don't go in there, it could attack someone_,' she reasoned as she reached for her transformation pen. "Mars Power, Make Up!"

As the magic cloaked Rei, she bloomed into the senshi of fire. Feeling more secure, Mars pried the board off the window and jumped through the glass free hole. Mars coughed as she landed, and the dust flew up around her in a mini cloud. However, Mars heard no other sounds while she stood poised to attack.

'_There might be nothing here_,' Mars realized as she stared around the deserted storehouse. From the inside, there was barely any light, and Mars realized instantly that much of the warehouse was obscured by the shadows cast by the mountains of rickety looking crates.

'_No, there definitely is something in here_,' Mars told herself as she took a couple steps forward so she stood in one of the beams of waning sunlight. Mars examined the warehouse, which seemed closed up in its own universe without sound or life. '_At least I'm in the light_,' Mars thought and attempted to calm her nerves as she kept her eyes peeled for any slight movement.

"Mars," a base toned, raspy voice called from around the shadows by the crates. Mars jumped, turning towards the sound of the noise. Her heart pulsed up by her ears, and she thought whatever just called her name might be able to taste her fear.

"Come out!" Mars shouted as she readied herself to attack. '_It won't get a shot at me,_' Mars thought as she revved herself up for what she thought was a certain oncoming battle. "Come out!"

"Promise," the voice said as Mars heard some noise from behind the jumble of crates. When the voice spoke again, it sounded slightly closer. "Not to attack."

"Why not?" Mars demanded. "I'm not in the mood to play nice."

"I won't hurt you," the voice called out again from the distant mass of crates. Mars bit her lip, trying to figure out where the voice was exactly coming from, but the acoustics made the sound echo, so she wasn't able to pinpoint a location.

"There's no promise you can make that I'll trust!" Mars declared to her mysterious opponent. '_What a coward_,' she thought with loathing. "Come out!"

"I'm sick," the voice pleaded in its hoarse tones. Mars curled her lips back in a feral snarl as she gazed into the murky shadows.

"You're sick? I can feel your aura, and I think you're a filthy youma!" Mars shouted towards the area where she thought the creature might be hiding. There were two stacks of crates that jutted up, and beyond those, nothing could be seen in the corner of the warehouse. '_I bet that's where it is,_' Mars decided and positioned herself to face the shrouded corner. "Come out!"

"Please!" the voice begged, and Mars sensed the dire need that radiated through that one word. She felt her resolve waver for a moment, but kept herself ready to pounce on that corner of the warehouse. "_I'm cursed_!"

"Cursed?" Mars asked, feeling an odd twisting in her gut. Her mind raced back to Yumemi lying in Ami's bed, twisting in agony from being trapped inside the body of a monster. Mars swallowed the lump in her throat, trying to will herself to feel the absolute anger to attack, but her resolve faltered as she succumbed to the idea of some other poor soul moaning in pain in the corner of the warehouse.

"Come out, I'll hold you to your word. One aggressive movement, and I _will_ attack," Mars warned as she squinted to see if she could spot any movement in the corner of the shadow cloaked warehouse. Then, Mars heard thumping sounds, as the creature began to move, which were accompanied by scrapping sounds as it shifted the crates out of the way. Mars silently said the word 'oh' as she watched the ape like creature bumble out into one of the rays of fading light.

The color of the fur appeared a russet tone like no ape Mars had ever seen. Also, the creature loomed larger than any other primate Mars had ever heard existed, and the monster was at least four heads taller than she was, even as it walked hunched over. It didn't have the typical leather padding on its hands and chest, but was completely covered with the fur the color of desert rocks. '_It's huge_,' Mars realized as the creature lumbered towards her, and Mars caught sight of the bony spikes that jutted out of its spine and knuckles that were mostly obscured by fur, and she spied the charcoal colored horn stubs on its head.

"We have . . . an accord?" Mars asked hesitantly as the creature came close enough that she could've walked four steps forwards and been pressed against its body. The creature raised its head and the crimson eyes met Mar's almond eyes. Mars drew a breath as she stared into the well of red that were terrifying because of their color, yet there was that immense sad desperation that was in the cry of '_I'm cursed_!'

"Yes," the creature said in its deep, throaty voice. Mars nodded, feeling her heart hammering against her ribs. For several moments, the air hung thick between the senshi and the creature. '_What is he? What's going on?_' Mars wondered as she surveyed the creature in front of her, who appeared in better state than she remembered seeing Yumemi.

"Your name," Mars demanded in an even voice. _'I can't just keep calling him creature,'_ Mars thought as she waited patiently for the response.

"Abinar," the creature finally told her after several moments.

"I'm . . . Sailor Mars would be a fitting title, although it's not really a name," Mars mused, but the creature cocked its head, as if waiting for more.

"What is your name?" Abinar asked after Mars stopped speaking.

'_Should I tell him_?' Mars wondered as she eyed up the muscular creature, which she realized, was probably not a creature after all. She bit her lip, deciding this might be the time to become Rei again and let this Abinar see the real her.

"I . . . my identity is precious," Mars explained. The creature nodded as he continued to keep his sorrowful stare on Mars. "I . . . I don't like this place."

"Neither do I," Abinar replied and lumbered towards the door at the back of the warehouse. "We can leave."

"What? To where?" Mars asked, even though the idea of leaving appealed to her. '_Where would he go?_' she wondered. '_Where could we stay that I could show my identity and yet hide a creature?'_

_  
_"Where do you live?" the creature asked from the door, which was now obscured in the shadow of night which had left only a tinge of light on the floor below the skylights. "Would it be safe?"

"What? Are you kidding?" Mars exclaimed. "My grandfather and his student might be there! If we got in without disturbing them, it would indeed be a miracle!"

"Then where?" the creature asked again from the door. '_The shrine is large enough to hide him, at least my quarters are never disturbed,'_ Mars realized. '_What am I thinking? I can't hide that thing, human soul or not, inside the shrine!'_ Mars thought as she studied the lump of shadow that she knew to be Abinar.

"The shrine," Mars replied in a whisper. How her will broke so easily, she could not tell. "We'll get in, but we need to go through the back streets of Tokyo and stay in the shadows."

Without a word, she heard the creature bang open the door. Mars crossed the warehouse, feeling numb and disconnected from herself after her last declaration. '_What did I say_?' Mars wondered as she followed the creature out into the night. However, she felt immediate relief after leaving that warehouse behind her. As the night deepened, the pair crept along through alleyways until they made it to the wall of a park, where the pair climbed over the fence.

Once inside the thick shadows that the leafy branches of the trees cast, Mars felt instantly safer. There was no one in this little park at this hour, and it bordered the shrine, and Mars recalled she could see it out her window. _'Perfect, we'll come in by my window,'_ she thought as the creature lumbered behind her through the refreshing night air of the park.

"Almost there," Mars whispered to the night. She heard no reply from her companion, but his aura still had the tints of a youma. '_I think it was mostly that warehouse,'_ Mars realized as they continued walking. _'Most of the uneasiness and evil was actually coming from that warehouse, not this creature,'_ Mars thought as they continued to the other end of the park, where they reached another wall. Even in the dark, Mars could see the lamps burning outside their shrine, and she knew exactly were the gates where, and she could see the lights from the opposite side of the shrine where her grandfather and Yuuichirou were probably in their rooms or in the bath.

"Stay here. I'll be back when my grandfather and Yuuichirou are asleep," Mars instructed the creature in a low voice.

"We are at your house?" the creature replied, but Mars had already leapt over the fence. She slid into her room, quickly letting her alias of Sailor Mars drop off her, and she became simpler Rei once again. Rei steadied herself and walked into the hallway to see how close her grandfather and Yuuichirou were to sleeping.

"Rei!" Yuuichirou shouted as he caught her when she came out of her room. The thick, shaggy locks were damp and untamed, which made Rei think he'd been using the _onsen_ lately. He gave her his enormous, idiotic grin when he saw her. "Where've you been?"

"At Ami's, strolling around," Rei told Yuuichirou as much of the truth as she dared. She peered down the hallway, wondering where her grandfather was. "Where's grandfather?"

"He drank a little and went to sleep," Yuuichirou commented as Rei started towards the onsen.

"I'm taking a bath, so you better sleep, too, and no peeping," Rei commanded Yuuichirou as she grabbed a couple fluffy, white towels. Then, Rei shut the door to the onsen and stripped her clothes. She washed herself off before stepping into the steamy water, where she submerged herself. Rei lay in the tub for about forty-five minutes as she allowed the balmy waters to sooth her and open up her skin so it could be cleansed.

Rei got out of the soothing bath, finally, and she dressed, feeling the exhaustion of the day begin to weigh upon her. _'I need to lie down,'_ Rei mentally moaned as she slipped out of the onsen. Only her footsteps echoed in the shrine as Rei crept back to her room. She took a deep breath and in a more subdued voice declared, "Mars Power, Make Up."

After she'd changed back into her senshi ware, Mars slipped out of her room and back over the fence without a sound, like a shadow creeping through the trees. She landed by the fence, where she made out the lump of shadow that was the creature Abinar. Mars beckoned him with her hand to come over to her several times, but the creature didn't budge.

"Come on," Mars muttered. The creature gave a grunt as it lumbered away from the tree it had been by. "What took you so long?"

"I was sleeping," Abinar mumbled in his raspy, base voice. Mars cocked an eyebrow in disbelief, and shook her head as she jumped the fence. The creature followed her, making a heavy thumping noise as it landed in the shrine territory. Then, Mars ushered the creature up towards her room, where she slid open the door and walked silently into her room. Behind her, the enormous primate creature turned sideways and squeezed itself through her doorway.

"You were sleeping," Mars muttered in disgust. Mars shook her head as she shut the door, double-checked that the shrine was silent, and then lit a couple candles so that her and the creature could see.

"Okay," Mars said as she drew in a breath. She let the power go, and soon, she stood there in her kimono she'd put on after her bath. "I'm Hino Rei, and a miko here at my grandfather's shrine."

"Hmm, so I take it I'm staying here?" the creature's voice was barely audible because it spoke so softly.

"Yes," Rei replied reluctantly. "And, I supposed, since you were so tired, you'd like to sleep?"

"Decent sleep is difficult," Abinar mumbled as Rei slid out of her room to find more blankets and another pillow, which she brought back. Then, she cleared a large area on her floor where she put the blankets and pillow.

"I sleep with this," Rei reminded the creature as she waved her transformation stick. The creature gave a nod and arranged itself on the floor.

"Would you've slept in that warehouse?" Abinar asked Rei as she blew out the candles and submerged the pair in darkness.

"No," Rei said as she yawned and pulled her own blankets over her head. She didn't take her kimono off but kept it on as she lay in bed, trying to drift to sleep. _'Damn, that creature is keeping me awake,'_ Rei thought as the deep, steady breathing of the Abinar creature reminded her of its presence.

_'I need to sleep_,' Rei told herself.

_'Its breathing steadily_,' Rei thought.

_'I need to sleep,'_ Rei reaffirmed her will to rest and shut her eyes. Still, the breathing didn't end, and she thought of nothing but her gentle blankets and pillows. As Rei found that place between waking and sleeping where one is briefly aware, the breathing lingered as her lullaby and rocked her to uneasy dreams.

A/N: This is the Abinar chapter, and I hope that I got my Rei personality across correctly. I didn't want her to be soft, but she needed to accept Abinar. Next chapter will probably be mainly about Abinar, Ami, Rei, and Yumemi. However, I do want to go into something with Minako. Once again, a better summary is appriciated. :D


	4. An Unfortunate Spell

An Unfortunate Spell

Minako tossed her honey hair over her shoulder like a large, shimmering sheet. She could tell people looked at her – thought she was beautiful – but right now, she only had eyes for keeping Makato from making a fool of herself. 'Back at it with Motoki . . . again! If it's not Usagi, it's Motoki. Why can't someone else do the baby sitting today? Where is Rei . . . she always keeps them in line better than I ever do.'

Makoto's laugh jarred Minako from her thoughts. She turned to watch the senshi twirl the end of her pony tail absently when leaning over the edge of the counter to talk to Motoki. "Any chance we can leave?" Minako asked as she walked over. "I have work to do tonight, and my mom is going to yell at me if we're out much longer."

Makato continued to ignore her friend for a few moments. Minako took the time to tap on heel on the ground like someone might drum their fingers on a table. Finally, Makato turned and said, "What's with you? Not having a good time?"

Minako sighed. "I don't like this place much. I'm know you enjoy it, but I want to go. Please, Makato?"

"Wait outside . . . I'll be out in a minute," Makato said, even though she'd already turned back to try and get Motoki's attention. With a disgusted sigh, Minako turned and walked out of the arcade. Walking away from the glass front of the arcade, Minako chose a spot against the brick wall of the neighboring building, right beside the arcade exit, to prop herself against a wall while she waited for Makato. Fortunately, the warm evening air kept her from having to put a coat on while she waited.

'I wonder how she does it; why do I feel like I'm the only one who worries sometimes? Is it because I live with Artemis? No, if it were that, Usagi would be a basket case!' Minako giggled at her thoughts, but her laughter dissolved into a sigh. She craned her neck upwards to stare at the pink and orange sky that made the glass and the steel gleam with hot fire before night came.

_Crash_!

The explosion of the front window sounded like someone jumping into a pool, but intensified, so the sound grated like nails on a chalk board. Minako covered her head to try and protect herself against the shards of glass, but she felt little, jagged pieces pierce the black of her bare legs. Standing up, after the initial commotion, Minako saw a beam of black light shoot into the shattered store front and pull someone out.

'The Negaverse! I bet this is Kunzite again,' Minako thought, and she felt bile rise up in her throat as her heartbeat quickened. Then, charging through the empty window front, Makato never stopped moving. Minako followed her gaze, and there, standing in an alleyway across the street, stood Kunzite with his victim slung over his shoulder.

'Better follow,' Minako thought as she drew her wand and went to step into the back alley to transform.

"Where's she going? Minako, what's Makato doing?"

"Motoki, go back inside," Minako pleaded. "I think she saw ho broke the window, that's all. She'll – "

Before she could get another word off, the young blonde man raced across the street after Makato. 'Damn him! I have to hurry!' Minako thought as she turned and ducked down where no one could see her. "Venus Power, Make Up!"

The changes hit her like a jolt of sunlight into her veins. She shimmered, and an older, stronger spring seemed to merge with hers when she transformed. Into the alley stepped a young, pretty girl, but out of it charged a golden warrior. Venus bolted across the street, and thankfully, too many people gathered around the broken window to notice the girl charging towards the alley.

When she turned the corner, Venus found Sailor Jupiter facing off against Kunzite. 'That's who he took,' Venus realized as she saw a person trapped in a black ball of energy. Then, Venus's eyes drifted over to Motoki, who leaned against a wall, as if he'd just dodged a blast, and suddenly, Venus realized he probably had.

"Get out of here!" Jupiter shouted as she turned to Motoki. Minako saw the concern in her eyes, and then, Minako looked up at Kunzite's wolf like smile and realized he saw it, too.

Kunzite launched an energy bolt towards Motoki, but Makato jumped in front of it. Minako watched as the tentacles reached out and enveloped her fellow senshi. Makato screamed as the electric energy of the blow wracked through her body. "Let her go! Venus Crescent Beam . . ."

Before she could launch her attack, Kunzite pulled Jupiter to him and used her as a shield against Minako's attack. The blond senshi dropped her hands, and her mouth stayed open, not knowing what she should say.

"Let her go!" Motoki shouted as he got up from the wall and charged towards Kunzite. The general laughed and flung out a hand. Motoki flew like a rag doll across the alley and smashed into several garbage cans before smacking the wall with a hard thud.

"Monster!"Minako screamed as she turned and ran towards Motoki. "I'll . . ."

"You'll what? Let me tell you what I'm going to do," Kunzite stated in a sharp voice. "You tell your princess this: Baryl will have the Ginzuishou, that precious crystal to rule all worlds, one way or another. Bring it to me, and you get your friend back."

With a crackle, a black tare ripped through the fabric of their world, and Kunzite disappeared through it. However, all Minako could see was him disappearing with Jupiter, who had gone unconscious in his arms. When he was gone, really gone, Minako leaned down and felt Motoki's pulse, and her own pulse quickened when she didn't feel his flutter.

"No, no . . ." Venus's pleading turned into tears as she pulled Motoki forward, only to feel the stickiness on the back of his head. "No . . . this is al l wrong. It's my fault. Please come back to me. By the power of Venus, come back to me."

Venus leaned over and kissed the boy on the forehead, and when she did, she thought she felt a warmth under her lips, like somehow flew on the coals of a fire. Venus pulled away and looked at Motoki for a moment, still fearing the worst, and then, his eyelids fluttered. She gasped as he exhaled with a sputter.

Motoki's eyes blinked open, and for a moment, they didn't focus on her, but when they did, his jaw slipped open. "Princess?" Motoki asked in a horse voice. "Venus . . . Princess Venus?"

Venus blinked rapidly, unsure if her ears played tricks on her. "What are you . . . Motoki, how do you know -- "

However, Motoki bolted upright, almost fell, but caught himself on the wall. "They're still close. We have to go. Come on."

Venus shook her head, unsure of what to do. 'Is this another one of Kunzite's tricks? No . . . this is too inane. Not his style . . ' Venus jumped as Motoki reached out and tugged her arm. Then, Venus came to and pulled away from him. "What right do you have . . . how do you know this? Tell me!"

The blonde man turned to her with a hardened, stern expression on his face. "Get me somewhere . . . safe. Let's go someone private. My . . . . my apartment? I can explain some of it there."

Venus nodded awkwardly as she stood there and took a moment to relax. Becoming Minako again felt like shrugging off a large, glittering dress and stowing it in a draw. When she opened her eyes, Minako felt diminished, and she found herself staring right at Motoki. 'He doesn't seem bothered by that at all . . . . what does he know?' Minako wondered, but she followed him when he motioned her to come. Minako jogged a bit to keep up with Motoki's long, quick strides. As he walked, Motoki's head kept snapping around, as if he expected a youma around every corner. Finally, when her feet began to ache, Motoki finally stopped; he began to fumble in his pocket, and then, when his hands reappeared, he held a key.

"You look surprised," Minako commented as Motoki stared down at the key.

"I don't know these things," Motoki muttered as he, nevertheless, walked forward and opened the door to his apartment. 'Oh gods, he's crazy! That bump . . . and he's seen me transform! What am I going to do to explain this . . . '

"Get in!" Motoki hissed as he waved Minako to follow him indoors. With slow, hesitant steps, Minako entered into the little apartment with rust colored carpet. Motoki threw off his arcade robe and paced around the room, as if trying to convince himself the other side of the room would still exist when he walked away from it.

"Motoki . – "

"That's not my name," the man snapped, and then, he stopped his pacing and locked his gaze on Minako. The senshi felt her heart pounding in her ears as she stared at him, and she was aware she'd reached for her transformation pen again.

In a low voice, which shook as she spoke, Minako said, "Tell me who you are, then. You know my secret. I want to know what happened in the alley."

The man's eyebrows shot upward, and suddenly, he seemed to become aware that he'd behaved badly. He made a gesture for Minako to sit on one of the chairs, and only after he said down did Minako take a seat opposite of Motoki. Now that they sat, facing each other, the young man leaned forward and said, "I'm sorry. I have no idea what happened, but I can tell you that I am not this Motoki. I . . . I remember some of the things he does. I can't speak this language, yet I can because . . . because I am him. You can call me . . . Lir. Yes, that will work for now, princess."

"Don't! Keep calling me Minako, okay?" the senshi explained, even though she couldn't put her finger on why 'princess' irritated her so much. Regaining her composure, Minako asked, "Just . . . are you from the Moon Kingdom, too? Is that . . . did that help you remember?"

Lir leaned his head to one side, as if tilting his body would help him understand Minako's words better. His grey eyes stared off into a place beyond Minako. When he answered her, he began in a low, steady voice. "I am from your time, yes, but not . . . not your kingdom. If that is not clear . . . what do you remember?"

Minako bit her lower lip. "Just the final battle . . . what killed us," she muttered.

Lir leaned forward, and Minako fought the shiver that rolled through her body at his this new man made Motoki's usually affable persona so serious and brooding. "You don't remember your family? Your kingdom? Nothing?"

Minako shook her head. "No . . . I think the queen wanted it that way."

Lir shook his head vigorously. "That shouldn't be," he muttered more to himself, and then, he looked up at Minako and asked, "Nothing . . . nothing at all?"

"I told you," Minako's voice began to rise, "I don't remember! Stop asking me!"

Lir leaned away from Minako again, and the young senshi stood to leave. "I have . . . they took Sailor Jupiter. I have to alert the others to get her back."

However, Lir also stood up, but when he went to put a hand on Minako, she pulled away. Even as she glared at him, Lir explained in a calm, level voice, "I am sorry. I scared you earlier. What I should say, what I mean to say, is that I am at your service. I can . . . I know things. I can help you get your friend back."

Minako relaxed a bit and sized up the man staring at her. After quickly wetting her lips, Minako said, "Stay here. I'll be back. I do need to tell Artemis and Luna what happened."


	5. Every Girl Wants to Be You

**Every Girl Wants to Be You**

The light from outside pierced the multi colored glass window, which was the height of most of the wall, and drenched the white, stone floor in a myriad of different colors. Of course, being as high as the ceiling of the entry way, the window had a lot of color to spread around the main receiving anterior room of the palace. In the corner, untouched by the light, sat a girl with long, stringy blonde hair wearing a flowing pink gown with small straps to hold it on her bony shoulders.

Even attired in the lace and ribbons of her frilly dress, the young princess still looked just that: young. Everyone heard the rumors the queen's pregnancy went awry, and the princess had been born early. Throughout her life, she'd always been tiny like a child's doll, and if never explicitly unwell, the young Serenity had ever been paler than the moon itself. However, when anyone met her, the first thing they would notice was that, even behind her porcelain facade and eloquent clothes, there was something quite awkward about the princess that just didn't fit with the image of royalty. Maybe it was how she wore her hair or her dreamy manner, but something about the tiny princess didn't suite many in the royal court.

And today, the young Serenity had to deal with the royal court. When the two large doors at the end of the room swung open, the young princess stood up and shook out her skirt. She knew she should look presentable, if only for her mother, so she tried her best and drew her thin, pink lips into a smile.

A host of people walked through the door, and the young princess feared she would know none of them. In front of the group came Luna, her shiny black hair pulled up onto her head in a finely coiffed style, wearing a large, silk taffeta dress with pearls sewn into the bodice. The princess walked over to her mother's most trusted advisor, who curtsied to the girl.

"We have been honored to be graced by the presence of the royal families from the outer planets today," Luna explained, and the princess Serenity stood on tiptoes to look over Luna's shoulder to get a better glimpse at the guests.

Among them were some men, some women, but all looked ready to be presented to the future queen of the moon kingdom. Everyone seemed to shine and glitter in the multi-colored brightness of their own worlds. They all curtsied in unison, and Luna moved aside to announce the princess a moment too late.

These behaviors – the slightly childish and unladylike ones – always perturbed Luna, but in front of the guests, she could do nothing but adore the princess with her practiced and perfect smile. As the guests rose, Luna escorted the princess to one end of the line.

"This is the princess Juno, who is the grown princess of Jupiter," Luna said as she introduced her to the eldest princess of Jupiter. The tall, brunette girl made a bow to the tiny moon princess. There could not have been two more different human beings standing beside each other. The Jupiter princess, tall, severe, and cloaked in a dress of thick, heavy emerald silk with long, stiff sleeves that puffed at her shoulders, seemed to dwarf the moon princess in every way. "These," Luna said, "are the princess's siblings, who will one day rule the moons of Jupiter. This is Alekto, the second eldest, princess of Ganymede."

The copper hair girl stepped to the front and curtsied to the princess, and the ruffles of her silk, golden dress crumpled against the floor. Every bit as tall as her sister, the younger Alekto seemed made of gold to the moon princess, who noticed even the girl's eyes were topaz in color. Then, two young men stepped up behind the copper haired princess. "These are the princes Nikola and Horos, of Callisto and Io, respectively."

The moon princess felt her face flush a bit in the presence of the two men. Like their sisters, both were tall and finely built. Nikola had lighter brown hair and dressed in gold like his sister, Alekto, while Horos had darker hair and eyes like Juno and wore a navy jacket trimmed in fine, cream lace. Young as she was, the moon princess knew an attractive man when she saw one. And as she was a princess, the young Serenity suspected one day she, too, would marry a prince.

"This," Luna said, as the fifth and final sibling stepped forward, "is the youngest prince, Orpheus, future ruler of Europa."

To the moon princess's surprise, the youngest boy appeared far less intimidating than his four older siblings. A bit smaller in stature, the youngest prince wore a jacket the color of sage in spring. Along the center of the jacket were a row of shining, golden buttons, and up along the collar were a sewn several emeralds. However, like his sister, Alketo, the boy had bright, coppery hair, and it certainly seemed almost as long as his sister's hair, too. When she looked up at the princess, a half cocked smile slipped across her lips, and an unmistakable gleam of mischief glinted in her teal eyes.

The moon princess nodded as she turned her head to look down the line of people, which seemed to have grown all too long for her tastes. At the end of the line, past the ruffles, gowns, silk, starched collars, and lace, stood two people – a man and a woman – dressed in black. The woman, with her long, shimmering green hair, wore a simple black dress with a high, green collar covered in black lace. The man wore a pair of black riding boots, black tights, and a grey vest with a long, elegant black jacket over it.

The young princess knew Luna spoke to her again, but she found she couldn't take her eyes off the strangers she'd never seen. In the hall of colors, they looked sorely out of place, and the young Serenity stepped away from her guardian, passing in front of the other guests, to go to the end of the line to greet them.

Serena woke to the sound of the phone ringing. She pulled her head off her text book and groped for the receiver buried under a pile of yesterday's clothes. "Hello?" she asked in a groggy voice.

"Serena, this is Ami," the girl said in a shaky voice.

"I'm sorry! I feel asleep doing my homework again!" Serena exclaimed. "I'm trying to be a better student, Ami, really, I am!"

"Serena, Makato has gone missing," Ami said in a raspy voice. "Minako called me. She saw it happen. I can't get a hold of Rei, yet, but I thought I'd call you and tell you. Luna is still with me. You should come over."

"Yeah, yeah, sure," Serena said as she slammed down the phone. '_Makato. . . she's missing? I wonder what happened,_' Serena thought absently as she got up and whisked her bag off the floor. She shouted a parting, "Going to Ami's to study! Bye mom! Be back soon!"

Walking down the street, Serena's memory jogged back to the strange events of the day. '_That thing happened this afternoon, and now, Makato's missing . . . did they take her? I can't think Ami could mean anything differently. Why would they . . . what good does kidnapping us do? They're just inviting us to come and . . . no way! Makato's too tough to be kidnapped!'_

Even as Serena reassured herself her friend was okay, she felt a pang in her gut. At first, she thought maybe she should get dinner before going to Ami's house, and then, the image of Makato dressed in an emerald, silk dress flashed through her mind. For a moment, Serena stopped walking, but then, she shook her head and forced herself to continue down the street. _'Those stupid dreams . . . sometimes I'll just wake up and see flashes of . . . people and things. That was definitely Makato, but wow! I've never seen her that dressed up in her life!'_

Arriving at Ami's place, Serena let herself inside. When she entered the kitchen, Ami and Minako sat at the table, and a cat perched on each of their laps. Ami looked shaken, and Serena could tell the gentle-hearted scout spent some time crying because of her slightly red and puffy eyes. Minako looked the opposite of Ami. The golden haired senshi stared out the window like she'd been carved from stone, and only her hand, which stroke Artemis's back, moved.

"What happened?" Serena asked as she plopped her bag on the floor and took a seat.

"I told you," Ami began, "Makato's missing. Kunzite kidnapped her, and we think he took another one of the crystal shard bearers. That means he's at least found two of the seven."

"What's he doing? Didn't we, like, stop that before?" Serena asked.

Luna jumped onto the table. "Serena, this is serious!" the cat snapped in a very human voice. "We don't know how to get into the Negaverse, but we need to get Makato back before they can hurt her! Do I need to remind you what happened when they kidnapped Tuxedo Kamen?"

Serena's face drained of blood, and she blurted out, "You don't think . . . _not Makato_!"

"That's exactly what I think," Artemis said. "I'm worried. Baryl has resources that we can't begin to imagine, I think. I'm afraid what it could mean if they kidnap Makato and brainwash her, too. We've been trying to find a hole into the Negaverse . . . someway to get there . . . but the only time one opens up is when one of the youmas or the generals pass into our world."

Ami leaned forward. "We could set a trap. They trap us enough, so why can't we set one for them?"

"Not a bad idea," Luna muttered as she paced across the table silently on her paws. "I can't imagine how we could lure them out without really putting ourselves in danger, though."

Minako pushed her chair away and stood up. "Well, don't they want Sailor Moon? Let's . . . let's give her to them."

"What! No way! Are you crazy?" Serena blurted out as she, too, jumped up from the table.

"She didn't mean it literally," Ami tried to reassure Serena. "She means we're going to use a decoy."

"They could very easily believe me to be Sailor Moon," Minako suggested. "We . . . we do something. Make them believe it's me. I'll draw Kunzite off, and you, all of you can get in while they're after me."

"I don't know how long we could trick Kunzite," Artemis mused out loud. "Even if we could, Minako, that's very dangerous."

"I'm the one who get Makato captured!" Minako exploded. "Give me a chance to get her back! Please, Artemis . . . Luna . . . give _me_ that chance."

"I don't see how . . ." Serena began to speak again, but Minako strode over to her and held out her hand.

"Your transformation pen. I need to borrow it. I'll be back . . . I promise. It'll be very quick," Minako said. Serena hesitantly held up her pen. As much as she'd been afraid to be the princess, suddenly, she found she didn't want to let go of the pen. But, before she could think about it anymore, Minako snatched the pen from her hand. In a flash, the senshi gathered her bag and disappeared with a slam of the door.

"Where is she going? Can she get that done on her own?" Ami asked Artemis.

"I guess we'll find out," Artemis said. "Ami, see if you can reach Rei now. If Minako's going to get her part of the trap, we have to be ready to get into the Negaverse."

Note: Serena begins to remember more about the moon kingdom! Minako is full of guilt, so we'll see what she does . . . and more fighting to come! I always wondered why the senshi never set more traps themselves, too, so I decided that would be a nice way to kick of this part of the story.


	6. Deception

Deception

He let his hands glide through the silver grass while he craned his neck up to look at the perfect, cloudless purple sky. The lilac color made him smile, and the cool stems of the grass between his fingers let him know spring had officially come to his world.

Where was he going? Today, it didn't matter. Well, he supposed it did matter, but in the distance, he could see the icy mountains rise from the ground. This was his valley . . . well not only his valley. It was where he'd grown up, and suddenly, he knew he wanted to go to the Jewel Lake. Situated at the base of the first mountain, he always loved to play around the lake and occasionally to swim in its freezing waters fed by underground caverns and melted snow.

He craned his neck upwards to look at the sky. Even in the daytime, he could see the planet of Jupiter, but it was the large, red orb of Mars that caught his attention. _'It is more constant than the morning star, and we have always lived in its shadow. We've always lived in its shadow.'_

'_Mother told me that_,' Abinar realized as he blinked his eyes open. For a moment, he felt suspended between his blissful memories and the pain of the world on earth. However, when he heard footsteps, he became all too aware of his bulky body and the chilly, wooden floor upon which he slept.

"Yes, yes, I'll be there. Give me the place when Minako tells you."

A candle flickered to life out in the hallway, and Abinar realized the warrior of Mars had been up and roaming around. '_Something is wrong,_' he realized as he kept still on the floor. After a moment, Rei came back into the room, candle aloft, and in the process of slipping on a pair of jeans.

"What happened?" Abinar asked in a raspy voice that made him cringe every time he spoke.

"I need to go," Rei muttered without turning to look at him. "Stay here. No one will bother you. I'll be back soon."

"You didn't answer my question."

Rei pulled on a grey hoodie and turned around to look down at Abinar. Initially, there was the flicker of disgust in her face, but then, she refocused and became thoroughly distracted by the mission. "One of my friends is kidnapped," Rei replied as she slid her hand into her jean pocket to make sure she had her transformation pen.

"You mean one of the senshi," Abinar muttered.

Rei started and snapped, "How do you know about the rest of the senshi?"

"I knew who you were," Abinar said. "And no, I don't know anything about what happened. I've been on the floor the entire time."

Rei didn't speak again, but Abinar could see her thinking. '_She definitely regrets bringing me here. Somehow, I don't entirely blame her,_' Abinar thought. Rei's communication pad buzzed, and she pulled it out of her coat. "Meet at Ami's house."

'_I think I've heard that voice_,' Abinar realized as Rei blew out the candle and left the room through the window. Once again alone in the dark room, Abinar found the silence with only himself as company uncomfortable. '_Ever since . . . ever since this happened, I can't be alone with myself.'_

So, to keep him occupied, Abinar closed his eyes again and tried to call up the good memories of his home planet. _'It's more constant than the morning star, and we've always lived in its shadow.'_

Abinar remembered he had been young when his mother told him those words. He'd been walking with her out across the vast fields by their house, and they'd stopped for lunch. He knew the names of all the planets and the moons already. He knew powerful people lived in those places, but no one ever explained it to him until then.

'_Why do we live in its shadow? Aren't our planets almost the same size?'_ Abinar asked. His mother brushed her light, platinum hair behind her ears, repeated the motion with her son, and then started talking.

'_Yes, we are, but you have to understand, the people of Mars are very powerful and proud. Long ago, when the first people, the old gods, came to live among the stars, the god Mars picked his home. Mars was the god of war, and he waged battle across the universe. Because we are the closest to Mars, we always suffered his greatest wrath, but I suppose that's the price we pay for settling closest to the War God.'_

'_Mars doesn't attack us any more, does it?_' Abinar asked as he'd nervously glanced back up at the sphere in the sky.

His mother laughed softly. _'No, not right now. But don't let the unwillingness to fight everyone fool you. The ruling elite of Mars still have the bloodlust in their veins. They're full of passion.'_

'_What? I thought you said they liked to attack people and fight?_'

'_Well, yes, but all the fighting came from the intense passion of Mars. There is an equally famous story about Mars's passionate love for the goddess Venus. Venus had a husband, but it is said they met during battle, when Venus convinced Mars not to conquer their city. Mars took Venus back to his world, and there, he became deeply smitten with her. Afterwards, she returned home, the savior of her people, and the alliance between Mars and Venus has ever been strong afterwards.'_

'_I don't understand,_' Abinar remembered that, at the time, he had no idea how one woman could stop a war. '_What did she do?'_

His mother laughed at him, but in a soft, gentle way that mothers do with their children. '_I think you'll find out about the power of beautiful women when you're older, Abinar. But let me just say this: her love and passion defeated the powers of war. That, my son, is the point of the story.'_

'_Yeah, that's the point_,' Abinar thought wearily. _'Look how well that turned out. War destroyed everything, and what became of love? Venus was the first planet to burn.'_

Minako squeezed Serena's pen tightly in her white knuckles the entire walk to Motoki's apartment. '_I don't know what I think he can do . . . but he's just as part of this as I am! And if . . . if this Lir is who he says he is, he might have an idea. What is it I think he'll know?_' Minako asked herself as she passed in and out of the bright pools of light from the street lamps. Finally, she arrived at the green painted apartment building and knocked repeatedly on Motoki's door.

The sound of a latch being undone made Minako withdraw her hand and wait. The door cracked open, and the familiar face of Motoki stared back at her. Even thought Minako saw the fair façade, she also looked into his eyes and saw something very different – a special cunning and power – in their brown depths.

"I need to come in," Minako whispered. Without a word, the man stepped out of the doorway and gave the slightest nod to Minako. With one glance over her shoulder, and the feeling she was doing something very wrong, Minako slipped into the apartment. She took off her shoes and sat down in one of the chairs, and like before, Lir sat across from her.

"It's really dark in here," Minako commented as she reached over and flipped on a light. "Were you sleeping?"

"No," Lir answered in an even, monotone voice.

Minako shrugged. "So you just like to sit in the dark?" she asked.

Lir looked away from her and stared out the window. With an expressionless face, he said, "I tried the electric lights and didn't like them, and I could not sleep."

"Oh, well," Minako stammered, and then, she remembered why she had come. Composing herself, she said in a very businesslike voice, "Before, you told me you knew about the Moon Kingdom . . . the Silver Millennium. We need to get Matoki back, and we have a plan, but I just don't know how to make it work."

Lir whipped his head around, and his eyebrows shot up. "You're asking me for help? Heaven and earth, what do you think I can do?"

Minako threw up her hands with an exasperated huff. "I don't know! You . . . you possessed Motoki or-or something in that alley. We need to fool Kunzite long enough to get into the Negaverse."

Lir shook his head and chuckled. The sound, so familiar to Minako because she'd heard Motoki laugh every time she'd seen him, still managed to sound strange coming from this stranger. Still shaking his head, Lir said, "I did nothing in that alley. I think . . . well, I don't know what I think, but you're the princess of Venus. You are their senshi, too, no?"

Minako ducked her head down and nodded. "I don't feel like a very good senshi or princess right now. I lost my friend to the Negaverse, and we think they're going to try and brainwash her, too."

'_It's my entire fault_,' Minako thought as she stared own at her shoes. _'I didn't know why . . . I suppose I thought he must be this powerful person from the Silver Millennium who would know all kinds of things about . . . I don't know what I was thinking. Foolish. I'm being a fool. I need to take this back to Artemis and – '_

"Princess, what do you need to do?" Lir asked in a soft, slightly rough and raspy voice. Minako pulled her head up and looked into his grave eyes.

"I need to fool Kunzite. He needs to believe I'm Sailor Moon."

Minako held out Serena's pen, but Lir did not take it from her, so she put it into his palm. She watched as he became wholly absorbed in staring at the transformation stick while he twirled it in his fingers. "Amazing," Lir murmured. Then, Lir looked up at Minako and said, "I have an idea. I'll need your stick, too. We can transfer some of Serenity's power to your pen. That will hide the energy signal . . . but when she transforms, she'll be weaker until you transfer it back. For the disguise . . . well, infuse it into the power during the transfer."

"Wait, you want _me_ to do this?" Minako gasped. "I told you, I can't do that kind of thing. I won't even be in my senshi state!"

"I have full confidence you can. I'll . . . I'll do my best. If it helps, become Venus for a while. Focus your energy and take some of that power with you."

Minako nodded and stood up from the chair. '_I suppose he has a point_,' she thought as she pulled out her own transformation pen. "Venus Power, Make Up!"

This time, when the energy flooded into her, like a thousand sun rays in her veins, she felt something else come with it. '_What is that?_' Venus wondered as her skin tingled all over after her transformation finished. '_My transformation feels . . . different. More powerful? Maybe it's just different.'_

Lir handed Serena's pen back to Venus, who took it and pressed it into her palms. _'Serenity, help me now_,' she thought as she closed her eyes. '_No . . . it's not Serenity who I want to talk to right now. I want . . . I don't know who I want to help me. Whoever can. I want this Princess Venus Lir seems to think can do all of these magical things. I want her to help me. I need to be her right now.'_

Then, Venus opened her eyes and looked down at Lir, who had been gazing at her the entire time, but he seemed to not really see her. Venus looked at him for a moment, and she could tell he looked through her or past her and saw something she could only imagine happened in the distant past. Then, Venus asked, "What was the Silver Millennium like?"

Lir blinked, and now his pensive gaze focused fully on Venus. He met her eyes when he replied, in the same, even tone, "It was very grand. I was the time of legends."

"Was I very powerful then?" Venus asked in a shaky voice.

Lir simply stared at her for a moment before saying, "Do you need to ask that? Of course you were. Do you not feel that inside of yourself?"

Venus sighed, and went to say 'no,' but at that moment, a flare of energy burned up through her. For the first time, she felt the images in front of her eyes disappear, and for a moment, a beautiful garden appeared. She could feel the cold grass on her bare feet as she walked under the stars deeper into the garden, closer to the noise of a trickling fountain. Then, like a rubber band recoiling, Venus found herself blinking in the present. Lir sat in front of her, and he seemed none the wiser to anything happening.

"I suppose it's true," Venus whispered, and then, holding onto that strange image, she let the rest of her transformation fade away so she was Minako again. Now, Minako held both transformation pens, and holding out her hands, she said, "Lir, come here. Help me now."

The man got up and took several steps to close the distance between himself and Minako. He clasped her hands, and Minako felt a slight tingling in her palms. '_Oh, he's lying. He's definitely able to work magic or some sort,' _Minako realized as she forced herself to squeeze his hands. The tingling in her palms never faded, though, and when Lir told her to close her eyes, she did so.

"Now," Lir continued to speak, "focus. Speak your magic if it'll help."

"Please, power of Sailor Moon . . . please power of the moon . . . come to me. Aid your servant, Sailor Venus, for a time. I will do no harm. I only wish to save Sailor Jupiter."

Minako felt the tingling in her hands increase, and soon she felt like tiny insects were running across her palms, and then, her hands went numb. '_Sailor Moon. Let me take on her form, her power. Only for a moment,_' Minko thought of the image of Sailor Moon over and over in her mind. She couldn't feel her hands, and if she hadn't known Lir held them together, she thought she might have dropped the pens because all the power began to leave her entire body feeling weak.

Minako yelped as an electric jolt shot up through both arms and raced down to her toes. Then, when feeling shot back into her hands, she let out a scream. "I burned myself! Oh gods!"

Lir pulled Minako's hands apart, and the pens clattered to the ground. Minko opened her eyes and looked down at her palms, expecting them to be red and blistered. Even though they felt like they should have been on fire, both of her hands looked healthy and normal. Minako tried to blink the tears of pain from her eyes quickly. Soon, the pain began to ebb, and Minako drew some deep breaths to calm herself.

Then, she realized Lir still held her hands, so she quickly pulled them away from him. When she moved, he adverted his eyes from her to stare out the window again. Minako took the opportunity to bend down and pick up the two transformation pens. She pocketed both of them.

"I think you're lying about not being able to do magic, by the way," Minako spoke to Lir, who turned back to face her again with his unreadable gaze. "I think you had a lot to do with what happened in that alley."

"You give yourself so little credit," Lir replied.

Minako looked at the door, but instead of moving towards it, she asked, "Would you tell me about the Silver Millennium? Maybe not now, but when we get Matoki back. I . . . maybe I would be better if I knew what happened."

"It ended. That's what happened," Lir said flatly. "Now, you should go. And when they go to the Negaverse . . . well, it is not a safe place."

"I know," Minako replied as she reached for the doorknob and let herself out of the room.

Note: Minako's made a new, mysterious friend it seems. This is also the first chapter that hints where Abinar is from, but that'll become apparent as soon. Anyway, the next chapter is about what happens to Matoki in the Negaverse.


	7. Demons of the Negaverse

**Demons of the Negaverse**

Jupiter woke up with a throbbing pain in her head, but when she twisted her neck, she found she couldn't move it. _'Where am I?'_ Jupiter wondered as she looked out into the darkness. She could feel the cold, metallic bonds on her wrists, ankles, neck, and a large, thick metal chest plate that kept her strapped down to a cold piece of stone.

"I don't see why we don't get on with it," a woman said in a clipped voice.

"You're entirely too anxious." This time, Jupiter recognized the speaker of the casual, smooth response. _'Tuxedo Kamen?' _Jupiter thought wildly. _'He's here? I'm . . . oh no! That no good bastard Kunzite took me to the Negaverse!'_

Jupiter tried to calm her racing mind a she focused on the voices in the distance. "She's going to be worthless. We pump her full of energy, and for what? So she tells us how to open some damned box? Why can't we break it open?"

"The princess of Jupiter must do it. You know that. She closed it, and she can damn well open it again," Tuxedo Kamen replied impatiently. "Come, let's wake her up."

Jupiter's heart began to race, and she began to try and twist out of her bonds, but the metal did its job and held her tight. Out of the corner of her eye, Jupiter saw an ethereal purple light bob into the room. "Good of you to wake before we had to do it for you," the woman replied, and now that she stood in front of Jupiter, the senshi realized she knew her.

"Yumemi?" Jupiter asked as she stared at the girl, who looked the same as before expect that now she wore the grey outfit of one of Beryl's generals. The grey uniform seemed to transform the girl from a mousy, eclectic artist into another presence. Looking into her eyes, where the purple color seemed to take on a manic, but steely, energy, Jupiter found herself literally looking at the other side of a split personality.

"You really aren't the bright one, are you?" the girl said mockingly. "I am Binah, stupid girl.

"That's not possible," Jupiter whispered. "That . . . how did you do that?"

Tuxedo Kamen chuckled, and Jupiter turned her head to stare at the grinning face of her former friend and ally. The prince leaned over Jupiter and whispered, "I think you've got other things to worry about, Jupiter. It's fortunate Kunzite, who seems bent on incompetency otherwise, was swift enough to grab you. See, I happen to know you know something quite valuable to us."

"And I would tell you _why_?" Jupiter spat, but Tuxedo Kamen only laughed at her.

"I like that spirit. You're going to need it. Raise the wheel." Immediately, the stone table on which Jupiter lay rotated upright. Juipter found herself looking down on her captors, and then, above her head, she heard a crackling sound. Jupiter looked up to see a large, round ball shooting out blue sparks.

"I believe it's fortunate I think you're going to live through this," Tuxedo Kamen commented casually, "because I don't think most people would. Throw the switch."

"No!" Jupiter screamed as a bolt of blue energy streaked down and struck her. She saw nothing, heard nothing, and only felt the hot power of the energy inside of her.

When she opened her eyes again, both Tuxedo Kamen and Binah stared up at her. "I don't think it worked," the general-youma commented.

"Do it until it does. You'll know when," Tuxedo Kamen said, and Jupiter didn't have time to scream before another crackle of energy shot down to her.

Ami stood by the crane and wrapped her arms around her shoulders to keep from shivering. Luna and Artemis curled around her feet. She stared up at the dark sky, where the lights of the city obscured all but the brightest stars. A breeze whipped down upon them, and the cats' fur fluffed up into the air and tasseled around by the wind. Ami looked up when, out of the shadows, ran two figures.

"The area is clear," Rei whispered as she approached Ami. Behind her came Usagi, who tucked her hair into the back of her jacket and wore a floppy hat on her head. Rei turned to Usagi and quipped, "Is that silly hat really necessary?"

Usagi wrinkled her nose and huffed. "They're not supposed to know I'm around! I'm going to not transform, so I have to hide. It's _called_ being in disguise."

The petulant blonde stuck her tongue out at Rei, who simply ignored her. "Minako said she's ready," Ami told Rei. "She's going to transform out in that parking lot, where they've started construction. We hide here, and when they come through, Rei and I blitz the opening."

"Uh huh, got it!" Usagi said as another gust of wind blasted the girls, and they ducked even closer to the crane.

'_I wonder how Minako plans to let them know she's here,_' Ami wondered as she stared out at the deserted parking lot. '_She was acting so strange when she ran away from us. I wonder what she wanted to do that we couldn't help her with_.'

"There she is," Luna whispered, and Ami squinted into the darkness. Sure enough, a dark figure began to cross the parking lot and came to a stop in the middle of the deserted space. '_Is that Minako?_' Ami wondered because it was too dark to make out who stood in the middle of the lot.

"Moon Prism Power, Make Up!" Minako shouted from the center of the lot. A dazzling burst of pink and white illuminated the night, and when the transformation ended, a very convincing replica of Sailor Moon stood in the middle of the lot. Then, the pseudo Sailor Moon grabbed something and lifted it up into the air. '_That can't be the crystal_,' Ami thought, but a burst of silver light illuminated the lot and the surrounding sky like the blast from a bomb.

"I am Sailor Moon! Defender of this world! Here I am, Kunzite! You've wanted to find me, and if you see everything, like the Negaverse _claims_, come get me _now_!"

Venus's shouting echoed into the night, and along with the sparkling light, made quite the impression in the still night. Ami bit into her lower lip as time ticked by while nothing happened. Then, on top of one of the buildings, Ami saw a crackle of darkness through the blinding beams of glittering light.

"Sailor Moon," Kunzite drawled, "are you upset we have your friend?"

The light dimmed when Venus lowered it, but there still was enough of it streaming from the pseudo-crystal for Ami to be able to see. Venus tilted her head up and shouted, "Don't be such a coward! Come down here and face me!"

"Very cute of you, but I don't come when called. If you want to fight, you should come up here . . . unless you're going to give me the ginzuishou. Then I might come down."

"Not a chance – unless you've got Sailor Jupiter with you!"

Kunzite chuckled. "Now that _is_ funny. Why did you really call me here, Sailor Moon? Do you want to see your precious lover?"

Usagi gave a squeak, but Rei whispered, "Shh! Usagi, don't blow this."

Then, to the left of the crane, another crackle of darkness opened up, and another person stepped out of it. _'Another general? That can't be! We've taken down so many of them already!_' Ami thought as the grey clad figure with its back to them advanced upon Venus.

"This isn't going to work," Ami hissed as she pulled out her transformation pen. "Mercury Power, Make-Up!"

As Ami changed, she heard Rei call upon her powers. With the power of Mars to aid her, the senshi pulled down her visor and stared out at the scene. '_Venus is losing power really quickly, and that's not the __ginzuishou. I wonder how she's doing that,_' Mercury thought, but as he grey figure raised a spear made of sharp, green crystal, Mercury charged out from behind the crane. "Sabao Spray!"

The light became obscured by the dense mist of bubbles, and from above the field of battle, Kunzite taunted, "Of course I knew you wouldn't come alone."

There was a flicker on the building, and then, through the mist, Mercury spotted another spot of dark energy. "Sailor Moon, you're losing power!" Mercury shouted as she read Venus's energy signs through her visor. Then, from in front of her, a shadow moved through the mist, and Mercury dodged the spear as it thrust towards her.

"I know you're there," the general snarled.

"Yumemi!" Mercury gasped as she recognized the voice.

"You silly scouts don't get it," the girl said in a harsh, clipped voice, "I'm not that whiny earth girl. I'm Binah, the youma, and now, the general of the Negaverse. Do you like my promotion?"

"You evil woman!" Mercury shouted as the mist cleared and she found herself face to face with the sneering face of her former friend. "You changed that poor girl, and for what?"

Binah gave Ami a mocking pouty face. "The best part is," the general said in a teasing voice, "you don't even know what we did. You have no idea how to stop us."

"I have an idea," Mars said as she came from behind the general. "Fire Soul!"

Binah leapt into the air, and Mercury dodged the fire heading towards her. The general landed not far from them, and the two senshi faced her, and formed what appeared to be the base of a triangle in the stand-off. The general sneered at them as she raised her spear. Suddenly, Mercury realized the lighting had dimmed again to almost complete darkness. _'Oh no! Where's Venus? Usagi should have followed her.'_

"Fire Soul!" Mars shouted as Binah threw her spear at Mars. Both girls dodged each other's attacks, and the general made a quick dive to pick up her spear. Mercury took the time to frantically search for Venus, and then, she spotted her on the other side of the lot.

"Luna, help her!" Mercury shouted as she prepared herself to attack. "Sabao Spray!"

The area once again became filled with fog, but this time, the increasing darkness made it difficult to see anything. Mercury looked through her visor and saw, by her energy readings, where Mars and Binah stood. As Mars raised her hands to attack, the general opened a dark portal. _'This is my chance!'_ Mercury realized as she ran towards it. Just as she reached it, the dark energy fizzled away, and she found herself standing alone with Mars in the mist.

"We almost had it!" Mercury shouted, and Mars made her way through the clearing fog to the other senshi. "We were so close, but we should go help Venus! I think Kunzite went after her."

Venus knew what a gamble her stunt had been from the start. To her surprise, Usagi's transformation pen lit up like a beacon, every bit as bright at the ginzuishou, and Venus used it to buy time. When she heard a dark portal open behind her, she knew she'd done it. Just as she went to turn, a flicker on the roof, and Kunzite moved to stand right in front of her.

"Well, Sailor Moon, here I am."

Venus started, went to bolt away, but then, she steeled herself and kept her feet still. _'Well, this is the plan. Let's see how far much time I can buy them.'_

"Love me Moon Beam!" Venus shouted as she fired a modified version of her crescent beam at Kunzite. The general flickered away, and Venus leapt forward just in time to feel the brush of a sword against her back. She heard the energy blast and fell do the ground so it smashed in front of her.

Venus rolled over and stood up, facing the silvery haired general once again. "Losing your lover really put you into shape, Sailor Moon," Kunzite sneered as he took several slow, measured steps forward. Venus didn't move, but stood, feet spread apart.

They both moved at the same time. The blur of gray came at her, but Venus already had her hands raised. "Love me Moon Beam!"

She didn't know how he dodged it, but the next thing Venus felt was a kick that knocked the breath out of her and sent her sprawling on her back. She rolled across the ground before the sword came down on right where her body had been moments ago. As she sat, catching her breath, she heard the icy laugh of the general. "Come now, Sailor Moon, use your crystal. If not, just give it to me."

"Do you have Jupiter?" Venus hissed as she looked up at the general while she brought herself to her feet again. _'Damn it, I can feel my energy draining. This isn't going to hold much longer. Those girls better get into the Negaverse soon.'_

As she faced the general, Venus watched his eyes wonder down to her hand. Then, his eyes widened, and she realized he knew. She raised her hands to attack, but Kunzite was faster. He blasted her off her feet. Venus landed with a hard thud on the ground, and as she struggled to stand, she heard, "What stupid trick is this? Which one of you is foolish enough to try and deceive me?"

'_Better own up to it sooner than later,'_ Venus thought as she focused on shedding the remaining energy from Usagi. The last flicker of light from the transformation pen fizzled, and only the lights from a nearby building lit up the scene. Venus could just make out Kunzite's figure, which looked more like a statue only illuminated by the distant fluorescent lights.

"You will give back Jupiter," Venus hissed. "I am Sailor Venus, and I will stop you."

Kunzite's chilly laugh came out of the darkness with the eerie effect of wolves howling in the distance. "Venus. I should have known. You have a history of being a _raging moron_."

Venus scowled as she pulled herself to her feet, even though she felt as if her entire back might be one, large bruise. "At least I don't have a history of being a _soulless monster_," the senshi retorted as she bought herself more time to try and pull any last power she had.

"I'm flattered," Kunzite sneered. "I once doubted you could kill anyone, actually, with powers as weak as yours, but alas, you surely proved me wrong."

"What are you talking about?" Venus snapped.

The general chuckled, and Venus's eyes had adjusted so she had a better idea of where he stood. "It's fortunate for us that you're even stupider since you're ignorant about your pasts. Don't worry, we will – "

"Fire Soul!"

Before Kunzite could finish speaking, the blast of fire lit up the night, and the general leapt out of the way. Venus dodged the blast, but when the fire fizzled out after charring a brick wall, the area was empty, and none of the generals were present.

"Did any of you get in?" Venus asked as she walked over to Mars.

"We were close, but they brought reinforcements," Mars sulked. "Let's go before they come back."

'_Damn it!'_ Venus thought as she walked over to the crane. She handed Usagi back her stick and promptly turned to leave.

"You did really well, Venus!" Usagi shouted after her. "Don't feel bad! We'll get Makato back!"

'_No we won't. That stupid Kunzite was right about one thing. We're totally ignorant, and I doubt Luna or Artemis know much more than they've told us. If they do, why would they keep secrets from us that could help us beat the Negaverse?'_ Venus wondered as she strode through the deserted streets. She never stopped walking, even as she disrobed as Sailor Venus, until she reached the door steps of her house.

As she plopped down on her bed, Artemis came over and rubbed against her legs before jumping up into her lap. "Minako, you were very brave," Artemis said as he looked at the down cast face of the senshi. "I mean it. We'll help Makato."

Minako nodded absently to make Artemis happy. She stroked his back for a while before she said, "I want a bath."

The cat jumped off her lap and curled up on her bed. Once she found herself in the soothing bubbles of the hot water, Minako found herself able to relax. She sighed as she stared up at the white ceiling.

A strange wash of energy, like when she'd held the transformation pens, washed over Venus, and the entire world seemed to stop. Venus suddenly found herself, the sun shining on her back, staring out at a large, sparkling lake.

'_Where is this? What am I wearing?'_ Venus wondered as she stared down at her long, flowing daffodil-yellow gown. The gauzy yellow fabric shimmered in the sunlight. Then, Venus realized she walked arm in arm with someone. Turning to that person, Venus felt absolute shook when she looked at another girl who appeared almost identical to the person she saw in the mirror every morning.

Instead of blurting out a scream, Venus heard herself laughing. '_What? Do I not have control over my own body?_' Venus wondered as she continued to move even though she wanted to stop and run away.

"Pollaria, I think I will take another turn of the lake on my own," Venus said as she let go of the other girl's arm. The other girl, who wore a long, lacy lilac gown, leaned in and kissed Venus on the cheek. "Artemis wants you anyway."

"Well, Castoria, I shall envy you, outside on this fine day, while I attend to my lessons!" the girl, her doppelganger Pollaria, said as she turned and sprinted up the path. The lilac gown fluttered behind her like butterfly wings, and only when she disappeared completely did Venus continue walking.

'_Castoria? Is that my name?'_ Venus wondered as she passed under a grove of trees. She reached up and pulled down a large, magenta fruit that was totally foreign to Venus, but Castoria giggled as she took a bite of it, and a sweet sticky taste like eating pure apple butter and cinnamon filled Venus's mouth.

'_This is really, really good,'_ Venus thought, and she felt glad Castoria had enough sense to pick another fruit and take it with her. Venus strolled out of the grove and came across a bend in the path, and an entire vista opened up before Venus. A castle stood out across the lake that sparkled in the sun like a mountain of glittering stone and quartz rising from the earth. A light stone, the color of sand, seemed to make up most of the castle, but in the sunlight, it looked almost like bleached bone. The tips of the domes and the spires glittered gold like giant unicorn horns in the sun.

'_Is this . . . is this my palace?_' Venus wondered as Castoria continued her path down to the lake shore. When her head turned, Venus noticed someone sitting down along the edge of the lake, and if she hadn't gone off the path, she wouldn't have noticed him at all because he was hidden quite well behind a tree that leaned out over the water.

As Venus approached, she got a better look at the man. '_Kunzite! Shit! Run! Damn it, Castoria! Run!'_ Even as Venus wordlessly shouted at herself, Castoria approached until she stood on the other side of the tree. The general didn't seem to have noticed her, though, and Castoria took a moment to peer around the trunk to stare at him. Venus felt her stomach do flips as Castoria's gaze continued to linger.

"I find the view is better over there."

At first, Venus thought she'd spoken, but then, she realized it was Castoria who said those things. '_Oh gods, she is me! She sounds just like me!_' Venus panicked, and her internal panic seemed to mirror the visible panic that flashed across Kunzite's face as he looked up and saw her.

"Your highness," he muttered as he stood up and gave her a clumsy bow.

Castoria giggled. "Come, now, there is no one around for which to be so formal," Castoria said. Then, she swept out her dress with a flick of her wrists and returned the bow with a curtsey. "The open air does not care for formalities, and I think you realize how hidden this spot is. Sit down. I disturbed you."

Venus watched out of her own eyes, completely dumb struck, as the future general took a seat at her orders. Then, seeming to forget that she was in a dress, Venus plopped herself down on the ground right beside the man. "Have you tried these?" Castoria asked as she held out the bright, magenta fruit to Kunzite.

"I do not pick from your gardens," he said evenly as he kept his eyes fixed on the lake.

"Well, I picked it, and I'm giving it to you," Castoria said as she practically dropped the fruit into the man's lap before he finally took it. Castoria looked over at Kunzite, who simply held the fruit in his hands without taking a bite.

Then, biting her lower lip, Castoria asked, "Would you mind telling me your name? I believe you are the ambassador, are you not?"

"That is correct, and I am called Anaximander," the man said gravely as he looked from Castoria to the fruit. '_Anaximander?_' Venus wondered as she heard yet another name she didn't understand. '_Well, my name was Castoria, so I suppose Kunzite's name could have changed_.'

"You see, I could tell you were the ambassador because the people of our planet never dress so drearily," Castoria teased, and Venus realized Anaximander wore an outfit which was almost completely black except for the grey waist coat underneath his dark, drab jacket, which complemented his ebony trousers and boots. Unlike Castoria, Anaximander wore no lace or frills, and he almost reminded Venus of a priest with his solemnity and his jacket's high, black collar.

When Anaximander didn't respond to her teasing, Castoria sighed. Then, in a gentler voice, she said, "I can tell you're upset. I was wrong to disturb you. Have a good day, Anaximander."

As she began to stand, the man murmured, "My brother, Lir, died recently. I have not been fit to be around for a while."

'_Lir!' _Venus shouted in her head. '_Lir! I knew he was connected somehow!_'

Even while Venus was still in shock, Castoria sat back down and continued to stare at Anaximander. "You should try the fruit," the princess finally said in a soft, song bird voice. "It cannot bring your brother back, but it is good. And the sunshine and the water and the air and the earth cannot bring your brother back, but they're good, too."

As he stared out over the lake, Anaximander took a bite of the fruit. Then, his eyebrows shot up, and Venus felt her lips curl up in a smile. "I told you it was good," Castoria muttered.

The image broke apart as fast as it happened, and Minako found herself staring up at her ceiling. She expected the water to be cold, but it seemed just as warm as the moment she left to become part of Castoria. '_That happened in seconds_,' Minako realized as she remained in the tub. She didn't trust herself to stand because she could feel herself shaking. '_I was a princess. I knew that, but to see it! And Kunzite . . . Anaximander was Lir's brother!'_

A/N: Thanks for all the people who've started to support this piece! It's really a fun thing to write and a break from my more serious things in real life. It's something I started a long time ago and wanted to finish because I had it all mapped out anyway. Why not finish it? Anyway, I decided to leave the ending a bit open, but don't worry! Rei is coming back next chapter, and another scout is coming into the season who doesn't normally appear until later in the series! Who is it? And why are they showing up? Hint: it's NOT to help the scouts!


	8. The Missing Link

**The Missing Link**

The thick, round pillars of the temple stretched upward into the vaulted ceiling until they truncated at the ceiling, which seemed to reach into the heavens itself. The grand ceiling, covered in rust red, gold, milky cream, and emerald swirls stretched the entire length of the hall. The only breaks in the brightly colored roof were the trunk like pillars, which were covered in all kinds of shapes. In between the pillars, in the alcoves underneath the windows, stood various statues of important royal figures in eternally stiff poses.

Here, in this grand hall of memory, Juno, the high princess of Jupiter stood, silent as one of the statues. She looked every bit the Amazonian queen, and at the far end of the temple, she fixed her gaze upon a bright piece of quartz. Encased inside of it was a golden, jagged metal rod shaped like a lightning bolt, which looked innocent enough, but the princess knew what it was.

The floor trembled under her feet, and the princess let out a sigh. She knew it had come to this, but even at this moment, she hesitated. She knew what she had to do: break the crystal, then it would be over . . . or it would begin, depending on how one viewed the situation.

"A little slow today, sister?"A snide woman's voice echoed through the temple from one of the many pillars.

That comment provided all the impetus Juno needed. She snatched the crystal, slammed it on the ground, and reached for the rod. She saw the blurs of green and gold, but now, she had her powers. Even as a swift kick in the gut sent her sprawling across the room, she felt the power beginning to buzz in her veins.

"Get the rod! Don't let her call upon the planet powers!" the same woman yelled.

Jupiter heard none of it. She held up the rod and shouted, "Jupiter power!"

The air crackled, and the burst of energy into the air flung the newest assassins against the giant pillars. The air continued to crackle as the finely dressed princess found herself wearing a shorter, more manageable outfit than her long, regal dress. And on top, instead of the simple silk and white of her later uniform, formed a golden breast plate, which covered Juno's entire torso and capped off at her arms to fit perfectly around her body.

"So this is it, Juno?" the woman walked out from behind one of the columns. Her coppery hair, now pulled back in a tight bun to keep it out of her face, reflected the dying light as brilliantly as the golden chest plate. "You still have a chance with us. Think of it! We're your blood! Why side with some weak moon queen over us?"

"Because I am duty and honor bound," Juno thundered. "I will do away with you once and for all."

"So this is what it comes to," Horos said as he walked forward after recovering from Juno's last attack. Nikola, the other assassin, also raised himself up from the ground. Both of the two princes dressed in bronze armor. The metal parts of the armor consisted of metal shin guards, solid chest plate like the armor of Jupiter, metal arm guards, and a helmet that covered the backs of their necks and the sides of their faces. The two brothers closed ranks together, and the only difference between their armors was in the styling of the scale armor that formed something of a kilt to protect their thighs and genitals. Nikola wore silver while Horos wore gold.

"I can't believe all of you!" Juno shouted.

"Believe it," Alketo snapped. "I was hoping you would join us, Juno."

"I see you're missing Orpheus. Could you not sway him, either?" Juno taunted.

Alketo scowled. "If we had done so, we could have even beaten you! But alas! Orpheus went to hide with his precious friends, but he will be taken care of soon by one of our friends. Oh, don't look so surprised. There are more people against that stupid moon queen than you can imagine."

"I will honor our allegiance! Supreme Thunder!"

The temple exploded with electricity, and the green and white hot lightning coursed through the bodies of the three siblings. They convulsed like fish being electrocuted, and after Jupiter's attack dissipated, they lay motionless on the floor of the temple. Stepping over Alketo's body, Jupiter walked up to the stand where the lightning rod of Jupiter had been concealed. She kicked aside the crystals and put her hands on the gold and green podium. Immediately, the round table grew in size and lengthened and expanded. A crack appeared in the middle, and then, the crack formed into two doors. A small hole opened in the middle of the crack, and a beam of hot, red light shot through, but Jupiter didn't hesitate to thrust her hand into it.

She groaned as she leaned back and used all of her strength to tug the doors open. When they opened, a wave or rancid humidity washed over the temple. Jupiter looked back at her three fallen siblings. She knew what she had to do, or what she wanted to do, but she did not how to do it.

"Jupiter! My queen!"

Jupiter flung herself around, ready to do battle. At the door of the temple stood a woman wearing a gray, high collar the reached over her head and connected to a flowing, gray cape. However, the collar could not distract from the large, sparkling opal on her neck or the belt of opals that encircled her waist and seemed to glow like ghostly moons. She wore scaled chain mail, which made her look like a fish, and it seemed to be a blue sort of metal that only served to make her look aquatic.

"Minerva! What business have you here?" Jupiter shouted.

"Our guardian refuses to go to the queen's armies that are gathering in the uprising," Minerva said in a voice that sounded like the solemn chiming of a single bell tolling. "I see what you do. You cannot simply place them into that tomb. You must walk in with them."

A deep, menacing frown creased Jupiter's face. "I realize that, but they are my blood. I wanted to preserve them, so in time, I may come back and retrieve their powers. If they die, their powers go with them, and we need them to protect our planet."

Minerva crossed the length of the temple until she stood over Alketo. "I will take them into the void. Neptune, Uranus, and Saturn are planning something. Stop them. Kronos goes to the queen now. Get there first."

With that, Minerva raised her opal, and it began to swirl like a whirl pool. "Tornado Storm!" she shouted, and a grey cloud spiraled out of the gem. Then, the lady jumped into her own gale and the storm carried her into the void. Then, from the steaming door, a gust of wind lashed out, and Jupiter held the side of the door with all her might. As the wind continued to ravish the temple, statues, and even a pillar, were sucked into the void. When the storm reached its maximum power, the bodies of the three traitorous siblings lifted from the floor and flew into the gale.

When they crossed the door's threshold, Jupiter put her weight against the door and slammed it shut. Then, the wide door shrunk down into the unassuming podium again, and Jupiter collapsed onto her knees from the shear effort.

Her planet began to quake beneath her.

Jupiter blinked her eyes open, and her vision eventually cleared so she could look off into the never ending darkness of the Negaverse. As she laid, strapped to her table, the memories of the battle in the temple raced through her mind.

'_I had a sister,'_ Jupiter realized as she continued to gaze into darkness. _'I had brothers, too, and I . . . no. I didn't. I can't think of that. It was another life time. I did what was right._'

"Your little friends came asking for you," Kunzite's cold voice reached her ears.

"Why don't you show yourself?" Jupiter spat, but her enemy only chuckled from someone in the darkness.

"It worked, didn't it?" he asked, but Jupiter remained silent. "I'm impressed, though. We had to shock you a good six times. How does it feet to know you succeeded in damning your entire planet? It was your fault, you know."

"It was your fault. The Negaverse began this – "

Kunzite's chilly laugh cut Jupiter off, and a shiver raced down her spine, even though she didn't think she could have gotten any colder. "Your royal line went along very willingly with it all. They wanted to be rid of the moon kingdom as much as we did."

Before Jupiter could tell the general what a liar he was, Binah snapped, "Is she ready? Does she remember?"

"Of course she does," Kunzite muttered.

"Beryl is waiting. Let's take her to the door." A green light flared into existence, and Jupiter saw the youma general held it in her hand. Staring down at Jupiter, the female general sneered at the senshi, even as she cooed, "Let's make a deal. You open this door for us, and you see your siblings again. I promise you that it'll be grand. Your sister and your two brothers . . . it'll be a family reunion."

"I . . . I locked them away for a reason!" Jupiter snarled. "No way am I doing anything for you."

"Let's put it this way," Kunzite said silkily, "if you do not open the door, we will do like we did to your friend, Tuxedo Kamen, and when you join us, you will open the door!"

"No!" Jupiter shouted as she tried to struggle, but it came to nothing. Still sneering down at her, Binah extended her hand over the senshi, and a wave of energy moved them from one area of the Negaverse to another. Here, an eerie purple light filled the chamber, and a glopping sound like mud bubbling in a tube reached Jupiter's ears. As Binah and Kunzite unbound her, a shadow of red hair came to tower over her.

"Beryl!" the senshi gasped aloud, but the queen did not smile or show any emotion. She simply stared with glittering purple eyes upon the senshi. When Jupiter felt all her chains fall away, she went to stand up, but then, the queen stuck out her scepter, and dark energy bound Jupiter. The senshi screamed in pain as Beryl lifted her in the air and moved her across the room.

"Kunzite, she better open the door," Beryl said in a crackled, sharp voice. The queen dropped Jupiter on the smooth, cold black stone. The senshi landed on her stomach, but as she rolled onto her side to stand up, she found herself staring at the familiar podium. '_Oh no, no no,'_ Jupiter thought desperately. '_What do I do? If I don't open it, they'll kill me or turn me. If I do open it . . . if I open it, at least maybe I have a chance.'_

Footsteps clicked behind her, and Jupiter felt the cold brush of a blade against her neck. "What is it, then?" Kunzite asked in a voice colder than the stones on which Jupiter lay.

"I'll do it," Jupiter muttered. Even as she stood to open the door, she felt Kunzite's blade resting on her shoulder. '_One trick, and it's all over_,' Jupiter thought. Out of the corner of her eyes, she could see the wicked queen watching her. '_Maybe I can get a shot at Beryl_,' Jupiter thought quickly as she put her hands on the podium. Like before, it began to expand to form the double door. When the hole appeared, Jupiter thrust her hand into it and yanked the door open.

The humidity overwhelmed the chilly air and blasted Jupiter in the face like hot breath. She heard Kunzite laugh behind her, and then, a crimson shadow appeared within the steaming void. Soon, the distant shadow solidified, and another clump of shadow began to appear. The first shadow began to look even more solid, and then, color came into it. The first thing Jupiter noticed about the shadow was the copper hair that formed and took shape. It wasn't until Alketo fully stepped out of the doors that Jupiter could make out her entire form.

Alketo snarled at her sister. "Did you just think you could get rid of us like that? Store me in a damned hell dimension?"

"Hell is where traitors belong," Jupiter muttered.

"Such bitter words," Kunzite said with a sigh. "Your sister doesn't seem to be enjoying the reunion."

Alketo grinned, and it looked like if a viper would smile. "Somehow, I'm not surprised," Alketo quipped. As she spoke, the clump of shadow took form, and two tall figures, carrying one between them, stepped out of the portal. Jupiter gasped because, while she expected her two brothers, she did not expect to see them step forward as men completely made of bronze.

"You changed," Jupiter whispered.

"Dear sister, you threw us in a hell dimension," Horos, who seemed to have a set of bright, topaz jewels for eyes, quipped. "What do you think happens in places with such strong energy?"

Jupiter looked at Nikola, who simply grinned like some ancient, vicious shark as his emerald eyes sparkled unnaturally in his metal face. Then, between them, Jupiter noticed they held something that looked like a statue. The skin seemed made of bright, glowing opal, and instead of hair, the top of the head was covered in shining, gray scales. When Jupiter saw the opal belt and the glowing necklace, she gasped because she suddenly recognized the unconscious Minerva in her changed form.

"I see you do not like our new looks?" Alketo asked as she walked up to Jupiter. With her sister only a couple steps away, Jupiter could see her eyes did not blink. Slowly, Jupiter raised her hands and touched Alketo's face, which felt like solid marble.

"You're not human. You're like a statue," Jupiter whispered. Alketo sneered at her before delivering a swift kick in the gut to the stunned Jupiter. Jupiter yelled as she flew across the room. She stopped herself from sliding along the black stones, and then, she stood up to face her sibling.

"Thunder – "

"Not here you don't!" Binah shrieked as she lunged at Jupiter. The scout struggled underneath the general, who pinned a sword to her throat.

Jupiter heard the clinking of solid rock on the floor, and then, Alketo stood over her. "Let me see," the princess of Ganymede muttered, "what shall we do with you?"

"Just kill me!" Jupiter shouted.

"Ah, speaking of killing . . . that's what you should have done to us. Who would have guessed out would have lost your backbone," Alketo murmured as she leaned down over Jupiter. Pressing her cold lips to her sister's ear, she whispered like a lover telling a secret. "No, sister, we will repay the favor to you. We will not kill you. We shall make you like us."

A/N: Sorry it took so long to edit this chapter! I was having some trouble with it. Anyway, I was really surprised at how many people added this as an alert after the last chapter. Wow! I wrote several Rei centric chapters, and I'm trying to work on one of the really interesting plot twists in the story. I actually had a bit of trouble with Jupiter's part at first, but I think that's because she doesn't fit in as well with the other four. I definitely had Jupiter as being more aligned with the outer planets, so thats how I'm writing this fic. Anyway, thanks, and keep on reading.


	9. Megaira

**Megaira**

Naru jogged down the street, her bag slamming against her side. _'I'm late! I can't believe I'm this late!'_ the curly ginger thought as she panted for air when she reached a street corner. _'I bet Usagi is already at school before me today! Oh no! That means I'm really late!'_

As she wiped the sweat from her brow, Naru heard a high, chirpy voice ask, "Where are you headed?"

She turned her head and looked down at a short girl with thick, wavy hair so blonde it looked directly dyed by a canary yellow crayon. "School," Naru replied.

"Oh, Juuban?" the girl asked as she wiped a piece of her bright, yellow hair behind her ear. Naru looked at the girl's uniform, and she realized she went to a nearby school.

"Oh yeah," Naru said, then she added, "I'm Naru. It's nice to meet you."

"I'm Kayori," the girl said as the light turned. Naru gave a hasty wave good-bye. She didn't think of the girl again that day. But as Naru ran away, Kayori's bright, lime green eyes, which looked a bit like those of a cat, followed her movements until she disappeared.

Several days passed, and Rei found herself sullen while going about her business at the temple. She kept an extra eye on her grandfather, and found excuses to be around the eccentric old man as often as possible. '_They could be coming for him next,'_ Rei theorized. Luna shared her concern and offered to come and help, but remembering the secret youma locked in her room, Rei politely, but adamantly, refused.

Thoughts of Makato drug down her mind as she swept the leaves off the front steps. _'I wonder if she's alive. Is she okay?_' Rei asked herself as the absent swishing of the broom acted as a monotonous background noise to her thoughts. Every so often, Rei would look up at the trees, where her two crows sat. _'They've hardly left me alone! I came back from that mission, and they were sitting outside my room cawing their heads off! I had to scare them away to get them to shut up. At least they're on better behavior now.'_

Only Rei could tell the difference between Phobos and Deimos, and her grandfather always wondered how she did it._ 'There's just something sweet about Deimos. She'll come down and perch on my shoulder more often,' _Rei tried to explain once. _ 'She's a bit gentler, and she follows Phobos everywhere. Also, Phobos is the louder of the two. She's much more vocal.'_

As if the crow could sense her thought, Phobos let out a couple squawks. "Yes, I know you've not been leaving me alone. If you're concerned about someone, go watch grandfather, eh?"

As if on command, the two birds flew off to the other side of the temple. Rei raised her eyebrows and continued to sweep. _ 'Well, it seems they got the point,' _Rei thought as she reached the bottom of the stairs. She turned around and trudged back up the stone steps to the temple, set down her broom, and headed back into the shrine. People had left for the day, and in the early evening, Rei found she had the shrine to herself.

_'It's nice that it's so private,_' Rei thought as she sat down and lit the fir in front of her. The flame jumped out and seemed to lick at her face, but Rei felt no fear and settled in to meditate in front of the crackling flames. '_Kami, please guide my mind. Our burdens have been heavy, and I see no way to get into the Negaverse. Grant me the ability to be stronger.'_

Just then, the flames seemed to jump, but instead of hopping away from them, Rei opened her eyes as the fire flickered close enough to burn anyone else. Then, on the other side of the flames, Rei saw another woman with long, dark hair. "Who are you?" Rei asked the dark haired woman, who wore leather armor and a silver crown with bloody rubies set into it.

"You know me," she said in a steely, regal voice. "I am Megaira. No one can stem my vengeance."

The flames between them shot upwards, and for a moment, Rei thought they covered her completely, but then, the fire died down to its normal size. Rei searched for the woman, but she realized that she was alone in the room. Instead of staying, Rei put out the flames and almost ran out of the shrine. _'Why does she terrify me?'_ Rei wondered as she headed down the hallway without thinking where she was going. Before she knew it, Rei found herself at the door to her room. She entered, shut the door, and then leaned against it, as if the door needed her weight to keep the terrifying woman in the shrine at bay.

"What's wrong?" Abinar asked, and Rei jumped because she hadn't noticed him sitting in the other corner.

"N-nothing," Rei muttered.

"Bullshit."

Rei shot the youma a sour look before she said, "Well, there is quite a bit wrong, but I saw someone in the shrine. The problem is, I don't even know who they were."

"Well, what did they look like?" Abinar asked in his normal, raspy voice. Rei gazed at the youma for a moment before she decided to answer truthfully.

"She wore armor and a crown. She called herself Megaira and told me she would have her vengeance," Rei answered, and she felt anger when her voice shook. _'Why am I so afraid?'_ Rei asked herself. _'Why am I even talking about this? It was nothing. Just a vision.'_

However, try as she might, Rei could not dismiss the sheer power in the woman's eyes. "I know her," Abinar said after moment. "Rei, do not think of her. She's dead. I promise you she's dead. She was around during the Silver Millennium, but she died in the war."

Rei looked at Abinar, and then asked, "Were you around during the Silver Millennium? And how do you know she's dead?"

"I would assume that she died with everyone else. She was a warrior of Mars," Abinar supplied.

"What? Is that why she's appearing to me? Did I do something to wrong her?" Rei asked in a rushed voice. "Abinar, you have to tell me."

"I told you," the youma repeated, "She's gone. Let her go. You didn't wrong her. She only thought you did. She . . . she thought a lot of people betrayed her in the end. I suppose she felt very betrayed. Don't ask. I don't know any more, I swear to you on what's left of my miserable life."

Rei glared at the youma and nodded in consent. _'He's not lying,'_ she realized. _'I hope he's right about Megaira being dead. If she's alive . . . well, she'll want to kill me. That's all I need. An angry warrior from Mars trying to take vengeance on me for something I don't even remember I did.'_

Then, staring at the youma once more, an idea came to Rei. "Abinar, have _you _been to the Negaverse?"

"Where do you think I was all this time?" he muttered.

"Could you get us into the Negaverse?"

"Why do you want to go there? Nothing good comes from there," Abinar said dismissively.

"No, you don't understand. They've captured Jupiter. We tried to get in several days ago, but we failed. Now, we're afraid they might brain wash her like they did to our other friend, Tuxedo Kamen. If you know how to get in, now is the time to say so," Rei stated frankly.

Abinar looked at Rei warily before he said, in a guarded manner, "Yes, I can get you in, but by you, I take it you're referring to all the senshi? If so . . . well, you're not my biggest fan, and the senshi aren't going to be mine, either. I also don't want to get left there."

"You won't. I swear on my life," Rei pledged. "I will protect you like one of the senshi, and if you fight with us, that will help our numbers."

Abinar cocked his head to one side. "You want _me _to fight with you?"

"Yes," Rei replied, just as surprised she'd asked as Abinar had been. "Fight with us, and I promise you the senshi will trust you."

"I doubt that a bit, but I will fight with you. It would be an honor," Abinar supplied. "Now, call them, and I can get you in at sundown, which is when the doors are the weakest. We have to hurry. The entrance is by that warehouse where you found me."

While Rei planned to contact the scouts, on the other side of the city, perched on top of a roof, a woman, who looked nothing more than a shadow, stood on one of the tallest buildings in the city like a living statue. Her long, green hair flowed out around her, and she crossed her arms impatiently over her chest as she scanned the city.

_'If the scouts are reborn, then they all may have been reborn_,' the woman thought as she gazed down at the lights. From up where she stood, it looked like the sky had been inverted onto the earth. The building lights twinkled like stars below, but the woman seemed unimpressed and impassive. A gust of wind picked up, but nothing moved but the woman's long hair, which ripped silently around her face.

_'Of course, I am not trusted by the guardians now, so I cannot go to them._' The woman's black dress tied over one shoulder, like a toga, but it was also bound with a cord to keep it close to her body. Even so, the wind caught it and whipped it around her pale figure. It billowed out like a dark sail, but she did not seem bothered by the wind like a normal woman might have been.

_'I cannot tell who knows what. If I only knew what the guardians have told them . . . but I suppose it does not matter. I cannot know that. I must focus on finding the one person who disappeared long ago.'_

Her dark purple eyes scanned into a past that appeared far too distant, but she saw it with accurate clarity. After all, being the senshi of time allowed her the ability to remember everything, no matter how painful or how long ago. In her mind, the freezing of her world began to play again.

"What have you done!" she heard herself screaming as she looked on from a distance as the planet became a cold, barren cube of ice. She turned to the young girl standing beside her. The girl's mouth fell open as she stared at the death of the planet. The older time guardian bore down on her, but the girl simply shook her head.

"It wasn't me! I didn't know she would come for . . . please, please," the girl pleaded as the princess drew a sword. Then, without thinking, she stabbed the girl through the chest. The girl shrieked as the darkly cloaked time guardian finished her work before the girl flopped at her feet in a pool of blood.

_'I should have known. When did it happen? I cannot say, but alas, I should have killed the ones who began this when I knew them. To think, they sat in my halls unnoticed.'_

The senshi's wandering mind came back to the present. '_It is no matter. If my brother is not reborn, I must find one that can show me the final resting place of his treasure.'_ With that thought, the guardian of time fizzled off the roof in a snap of blurred light, and the wind continued to blow like she'd never been there looking down on the sleeping city.

A/N: That's right! Pluto is here! I wanted to maybe put in another flashback, but I'll save that for a future chapter. Anyway, the next chapter is huge one, so this one is a bit small. I'm also sorry if the part with Naru seemed abrupt, but I wanted to get that introduced before later chapters happened.


	10. The Servant of the Moon Kingdom Reborn

**The Servant of the Moon Kingdom Reborn**

Note: This is a pretty large chapter, but it's full of action. I really liked writing this chapter and the one following it. I think this story might finally start to live up to the romance pairing I advertised.

The sun began to sink when Rei and Abinar reached the warehouse. The setting sun turned the sky a bright, rosy pink, but inside the warehouse, the light came through the windows dimmed and colored the place a bloody crimson color. '_I still feel uncomfortable in here,_' Rei thought as she waited by the cracked door while Abinar sat farther inside the dilapidated building.

Just then, the scout communicator buzzed, and Rei answered it. Ami's face flickered onto the screen. "I'm with Usagi and Minako. We're on the street you told us about. Where are you?"

"Do you see the warehouse? I'm inside. We can transform in here." Rei clicked the communicator off and turned back to Abinar. "Well, they're coming. You sure it's here?"

"Yes. You can feel it, can't you?" Abinar replied. Rei felt the hairs on her back tingle, and she nodded stiffly. _'I can feel it alright. It's like when I was here before. I thought it was Abinar at the time. Who knew I discovered the portal to the Negaverse_.'

"Rei," Abinar said urgently, "will you keep your promise? _Please_ don't let them harm me."

"Why do you keep asking me that? Of _course_ I'll keep you from harm," Rei whispered between clenched teeth.

"Your loyalty lies with them, I know that, but please do not turn on me," Abinar begged again. Rei sighed and nodded. '_Why is he so worried? I don't understand_,' Rei thought, but she stopped thinking about Abinar's pleas when the three senshi raced across the street. Rei stuck her head out and waved them over, and when they sprinted to the door, Rei stepped outside and closed it.

"I thought we were going to transform inside?" Usagi asked as she tried to breeze past Rei, but the fire senshi grabbed the shorter Usagi by the shoulders and stopped her.

"I have to tell you something," Rei steeled herself to tell them the truth. "I had help finding this place. Um . . . _unconventional help_. His name is Abinar. He's agreed to get us in, but the deal is we don't harm him."

"Okay," Usagi said and shrugged. The pig-tailed school girl ducked under Rei's arm and pushed open the door. Before Rei could stop her or say anything, Usagi let out a squeak.

"What kind of help?" Minako asked warily as Ami, too, headed in after Usagi. Rei stared at Minako, who planted both hands on her waist.

"I may have forgot to mention he's a youma," Rei said tersely, "but that doesn't negate – "

"Rei, what were you thinking!" Usagi squawked as she sprinted back outside and flung herself on Rei. "We can't trust a youma!"

Minako brushed past Rei, who tried to unlock Usagi from around her body, and went inside to face the youma. Ami stood at the door, studying the creature warily, but Minako walked right up to it. "Can you get Makato back?" Minako demanded in a steely voice. "If you're going to betray us, have no doubt I will end you."

'_Wow, she sounds very tough_,' Rei thought as she finally pried herself away from Usagi and walked inside. Usagi hesitantly followed but remained planted behind Ami for safety. "If I do anything you think is traitorous, you can kill me, then," Abinar told Minako, "and as for your friend . . . I cannot guarantee anything. I told you I'd get you in."

"Good enough for me," Minako said as she turned around to look at the other three. "Let's transform and go. Venus Power Make-Up!"

"Mars Power Make-Up!" Rei said, and immediately, she felt her veins warm up until it felt like fire flowed through them. After the intense beginning, she felt herself return to a more normal state, except she could feel the blood pounding in her veins. '_I am Mars_,' she thought. '_I am ready to fight_.'

Turning around, she realized Mercury and Sailor Moon had also transformed, if a bit reluctantly. "Please don't tell me I'm the only one who has bad feelings about this?" Sailor Moon asked in a voice only slightly less whiny than Usagi would use.

"No, you're not the only one," Mercury whispered, "but we're running out of options. Let's go."

Mars turned to Abinar, who got up and lopped over to the shadowed end of the warehouse on all fours. When the other three hesitated, Mars pulled herself up to her full height and followed with long, purposeful strides. She heard the other senshi begin to follow, but as she passed into the darkness of the warehouse, where the crates and boxes cast long, eerie shadows, Mars realized she felt no fear.

'_I'm ready_,' she thought. '_I'm ready to face the Negaverse. Am I the only one?_' However, she didn't have much time to ponder the state of her fellow senshi because Abinar began to move several of the crates aside. Immediately, a rush of dark energy seemed to fill the warehouse, and Mars could even taste it on her tongue. '_Ugh! It feels like I swallowed a piece of iron!_'

"Here we are," Abinar said as he moved the last crate and placed both hands on the wall. Then, the dark metal seemed to tear, and sparks of dark energy shot out. Mars held up her hands to shield her face, but the sparks stopped once Abinar widened the hole. A gust of chill air came through, and goose bumps rose all over Mars's body.

"Me first," Mars told Abinar. "Come after me since we're not going to close the hole."

"It should stay open," Abinar replied as Mars walked up to the edge of the chilly portal. '_This is it_,' she thought as she sucked in a breath and jumped into the hole. At first, it felt like someone passed a bolt of lightning through her, but then, instead of frying, Mars found herself tumbling into snow.

Quickly pulling herself to her feet, Mars looked around at the sub-zero landscape of ice and snow. _'Where is this_?' Mars wondered as she pulled her arms around herself. '_Thankfully, I'm the senshi of fire, or else this would be much worse. No normal person could survive this place,'_ Mars realized just as the large, crimson form of Abinar tumbled through after her.

"This is where you escaped from?" she asked him. The ape youma pushed himself up on all fours and nodded as the wind whipped his rusty colored fur in all directions.

"See why I left?" he asked. Mars nodded as she looked around for something, anything, that would tell her where Beryl, her generals, and her youma would be, but everything looked the same bleak white and gray. Just then, Mercury, Venus, and Sailor Moon fell through the hole.

Mercury got to her feet first and joined Mars and Abinar while they stared out at the landscape. "Antarctica. We're on the south pole," the senshi said as her mouth fell open. "This is where the Negaverse has been hiding?"

"Where else would they have chosen?" Mars muttered. "It's a perfect location for them to hide, when you think about it."

When Venus and Sailor Moon, both of their teeth chattering, joined the other three, Abinar pointed to their left. "We go that way. There's a cave. That should take us where we want to go."

"Do they know we're here?" Ami asked.

Abinar did his best to imitate a shrug. "I have no clue. When they do, I'm sure we'll know. Let's hurry, though."

'_Surprise might still be on our side_,' Mars thought as she followed Abinar as he lopped across the frozen plain. Snow whipped into her face, but Mars ignored it. However, because of the storm, only when they were feet away from the cave entrance could they see it. Once they got inside and out of the blizzard, Mars suddenly realized another problem.

"We have no light," Ami said first as they both stood inside the cave entrance and looked down into the darkness.

"It will be lit farther down," Abinar replied, but then he added, "but you're right. There's no light in the tunnels."

"I'll fix this," Mars said. She pressed her hands together, and when she opened them, a flame flickered between them and drenched the bleak surroundings with a red, crimson glow. Without another word, the four senshi and the youma headed deeper into the Negaverse. The cave slopped drastically downward at first, and Mars found herself having to dig her heels in and take very controlled steps to keep herself from stumbling forward by accident. Abinar took the lead, though, but there was no need since the tunnel had no forks or tricky turns while it continued downward in darkness.

When the tunnel leveled off, they came to their first split, which was a simple two way fork. "Which one?" Abinar asked.

"Where do they go?" Mercury asked.

"Well, I would say the right one," Abinar replied, but then he added, "they keep most prisoners to the right, but I believe the left leads to Beryl's throne. I've never been down there, so I would not know."

"If that's the main part of the Negaverse, we should go that way," Venus stated. "It's pointless to go a safer route if Makato isn't there."

"We don't know she's not there," Mercury pointed out the counter argument. "Maybe they want us to come after them. We're not ready to charge Beryl's throne room. We'll get caught before we do. We stay together and go to the right."

"No way! I'm going to get Jupiter," Venus huffed as she walked over to the left tunnel. "If we can't agree, we should split up."

"_That_ strategy won't make us vulnerable and easier to catch," Mars quipped sarcastically. "We should stay together. We don't want to make it easier for them to pick us off."

"I agree with Venus," Sailor Moon spoke up. "I'll go with her. You three can head the other way."

"We'll keep the communicators on," Mercury said as she flipped hers on. "If there are any problems, any at all, we come back to help each other, okay?"

Everyone nodded, but Mars felt a squirming in her stomach. _'I don't like this idea at all_,' she thought even as she turned and followed Abinar down the other tunnel. '_Usagi just wants to get Tuxedo Kamen back, and Venus is just being a moron!'_ Now, she could only hear the clicking of Mercury's footsteps behind here. As they continued walking, the floor smoothed out, and Mars realized they were walking over ice.

Because she could keep it in no more, Mars asked, "Mercury, why did you let them get away with that? We should have stayed together."

"Maybe they were right, and Sailor Moon is our leader. She wanted to split up, so I didn't think it was my place to disagree, and Venus was going to be very insistent," Mercury explained herself.

Mars snorted. "Sailor Moon! When she starts acting like our leader, instead of either Venus or I, I'll start treating her like our leader."

"You shouldn't be so hard on her," Mercury said in a guilty tone of voice. "She tries her best. She wasn't meant for this."

"Yes she was," Mars snapped. "If I don't hold her accountable, who will? Venus just takes second in command with no problem, and you and Jupiter just do whatever Venus tells you."

At the mention of Jupiter's name, Mars felt her insides twinge with guilt, but she didn't show it to Mercury or Abinar. "You took this easier than the rest of us, that's all I'm saying," Mercury clarified.

"What?" Mars asked, and she almost stopped, but then she focused and kept walking.

"What she means," Abinar muttered, "is your character, your true soul, is Mars. You are the senshi of war. It's in your character to fight."

"What do you know about my character?" Mars snapped at Abinar.

"Ask me later, and I'll give you a real answer," Abinar said because, just then, Mars realized another pale light began to overwhelm her flame. Soon, an icy blue light lit up the chamber ahead of them, and Mars extinguished her hand held flame as the tunnel opened up into a massive chamber.

"It looks like . . . well, what I thought an inside of a volcano might look like," Mars said as she stared up at the doomed roof high above them. However, instead of lava, the entire room seemed made of shimmering, pale blue ice crystals. The room held a strange, phantasmal blue glow, and as Mars looked around at the walls, she realized that's where the light came from. Walking over to one of the icy walls, Mars realized the crystals looked different because they weren't the same, normal ice present outside.

Mercury screamed first. Mars jumped away from the wall and ran over to her fellow senshi, who stood in the middle of the room, staring dumbly at the walls. "What?" Mars asked as she looked for an enemy, but Mercury just pointed.

"Oh," Mars whispered as she saw it, too. '_People . . . youma. All of them are frozen in the ice,' _Mars realized as a shiver crawled down her spine. She looked down at Abinar, who didn't react at all. "You knew this was here?" she asked.

"Yes," Abinar replied. "You might look for your senshi Jupiter here, too, but I doubt she's here."

"This is horrible," Mercury whispered.

"Beryl apparently gets very angry, very often," Abinar muttered as he headed over to the other side of the vast, rough room. "The exit is here. It leads to more tunnels, maybe more of the same."

"I hoped you'd be stupid enough to show up here," a cold voice whispered, and Abinar jumped away from the entrance because it wasn't empty. "I'm surprised you found your way in, though."

"Kunzite!" Mercury gasped as she retreated over with Mars and Abinar. The three turned to face Kunzite, who strolled through the door, swinging his sword, which was as white and cold as the ice all around them.

"Don't act surprised. Even though I would love to torment your friends, too, there's a greeting party waiting for them. My job is much more fun. I get to kill the three of you," Kunzite hissed as he raised his weapon.

"Really?" Mars growled as she spread her feet and took a fighting stance. "I think you'll find that difficult once all I've left of you are ashes. Fire Soul!"

The hot blast dispelled the chill air all around them, but Kunzite dodged it and came at them from the side. He threw a purple disk of dark energy at them, and it cut Mercury on the shoulder, but both senshi dodged the attack from his sword. However, Kunzite separated them, and as Mars readied another attack, he turned to Mercury.

"Sabao Spray!" Mercury shouted, and the room filled with chilly mist. Mars, making sure Abinar still stood beside her, leveled her hands, ready to fire at Kunzite.

Then, through the fog, she heard Mercury scream. "No! Fire Soul!"

As the fire burned away the fog, Mars could see again, but she realized all her attack did was sear a large hole in one of the walls. Sprawled out on the floor lay Mercury, and Mars ran over to her. '_She's still breathing, but he knocked her out with a powerful attack,_' Mars realized as she checked her friend's vital signs. Then, she heard a deep growl from Abinar, and turned in time to see the youma intercept Kunzite's charge at her.

The youma knocked the general to the floor, but Kunzite blasted the creature off him. The dark energy flung Abinar across the room, but the youma recovered quickly and faced the general. "Hmmm, a stray beast. What a pity. I think I can fix that, though," Kunzite muttered as he pulled out the black crystal.

"No way!" Mars shouted as she launched herself at the general. She slammed into him and knocked the crystal from his hands. Kunzite let out a feral yell and struck at her with his sword, but Mars rolled away from him before he could attack her. "Fire Soul!" Mars screamed again, and this time, the attack partially hit the recovering general as it also seared open part of the floor.

Kunzite stood up and quickly put out the parts of him which caught fire. "You little wench," he hissed as he wiped soot from his face. Then, he bent his sword into a shimmering, bright purple band of dark energy. "Let's see you dodge this."

He flung the weapon at Mars, and she jumped out of the way, but the attack ricocheted back and cut her across the back of her shins. She screamed as she tried to dodge the second bounce, which cut her back. Finally, the weapon returned to Kunzite, who turned it back into a sword.

'_Oh god, I can't withstand another one of those blows,_' Mars thought as she struggled to stay on her feet. '_He's really strong. I can't keep fighting him like this or else I'll lose, and then he'll kill all of us, no problem. I have to stay alive to help Mercury._'

Mars raised her hands to attack, but Kunzite simply laughed. "You don't have enough energy for another attack. Come now, Sailor Mars, it's over," the general said as he sneered at her. '_He's right. Damn it, if I had a little more time, I could at least get a chance to burn that smirk off his face!'_

Kunzite bent his sword into the glowing purple energy boomerang again, but what he didn't see, that Mars could, was the column of blue fire heading for his back. The flames erupted suddenly from the wall, and Mars dodged the attack, which blasted over Kunzite, through where she had stood in front of him, and into the ice wall across the room to form a pillar of flame the length of the room.

'_What is that?_' Mars wondered as she gaped at the raw display of power. '_Did . . . did Abinar do that?_' Mars wondered as she searched for the youma. However, Mars spied the youma ambling to his feet over by Sailor Mercury, and nowhere near where the attack happened. "Abinar, what was that?" Mars asked the youma. However, the creature looked up at Mars with blood shot eyes and growled.

"Abinar, what's wrong with you?"

Even as Mars asked the question, the youma let out a feral yowl and charged her. Mars shouted, "Abinar! Come to your senses!"

The youma jumped at her, but Mars slid away from the monster. '_What's happened to him?_' Mars thought in a panic. '_Did the dark crystal work_?' Before Mars could think about it, the youma recovered and turned back around, but this time, he ran at the unconscious Mercury.

"No!" Mars shouted, but she realized what she had to do. "Fire Soul!"

The attack hit the youma directly on the back, and it dropped and howled as the flames consumed it. After a moment, the monster curled up silently, and only its burnt carcass remained. Mars felt her body shaking, but she looked away from the dead youma when she heard Kunzite shriek, "You! _You_!"

Mars spun around, and when she saw the man standing at the edge of the hole in the ice wall, her jaw dropped open. Mars echoed Kunzite's shocked tone as she gasped, "_Jadeite_?"

However, the blonde man, his skin deathly pale and his lips still blue, didn't seem to hear Mars as he took several steps towards Kunzite, who looked as if his eyes might pop out of his skull. "Last time we met," the blonde drawled as puffs of steam formed when he spoke, "it was the opposite situation, was it not, Anaximander?"

The blonde opened his hand and showed Kunzite his black crystal. Before Mars could comprehend anything, Jadeite flung the shard at Kunzite, who flicked away before it could strike him. "Damn him!" the blonde cursed as he went to retrieve the shard.

"Stop!" Mars shouted as she raised her hands and pointed them at the general. Midway to the shard, the man stopped moving and turned slowly to face Mars. Even as Mars pointed at him, ready to attack, the general raised his hands in a gesture of surrender.

"I just stopped him from killing you," the general said evenly. "Are you going to kill me, then, Sailor Mars?"

"That-that was you? With the fire?" Mars asked warily. "How do I know you didn't want to kill both of us? That was headed for me, too!"

The man frowned slightly. "I didn't honestly have much of a choice where to aim that attack. Look, if what he said is true, the other two are in trouble. Mercury's also really injured, and you don't look so good yourself."

"I'm _just fine_," Mars snarled, and as the man turned back to get the crystal, Mars shouted, "Don't! I will do it!"

The general turned around again and sighed as he gestured to the shard. "Look, I won't use it, but we need to keep it from them."

"There is no _we_ here," Mars snapped.

The man bit his lower lip and then began to spew out a slew of quick sentences. "We don't have much time. I know you're low on trust, but please, _please_ just keep in mind I kept that man from killing you. I promise I'll explain everything when this is over. Besides you made a promise, and I would like you to honor it now, please, Sailor Mars, if you want to get out of here, don't kill me."

Mars blinked, and then, hesitantly, she asked, "Abinar?"

"Yes," the man said with a sigh. "Yes. Exactly. We have to go."

"How?" Mars asked.

"Later. _Please_, let me tell you later," Abinar said as he leaned down and picked up the black shard and stowed it in his jacket. Then, looking back up at Mars, he said, "I'm running on adrenaline and the burst of energy from the magic, but I can't really feel much of my body, and I don't think that's a good sign at all."

"Right," Mars whispered as she finally lowered her hands and went over to Sailor Mercury. "She's still alive, but she's a lot colder now and still unconscious. One of us has to carry her because I don't think she's waking up."

"If you're up to it, you should," Abinar muttered as he knelt down and examined the senshi. "She's light, and I think I might have another attack of some sort left."

Mars sighed. '_He's right. I'm spent,_' the senshi realized, and she pulled Mercury over her shoulders. Fortunately, Mercury weighted the least of all the senshi, so Mars found no problem in carrying the unconscious girl over her shoulders, even if her knees did shake a bit at first. Then, glancing at her strange ally, Mars began to walk to the exit.

It occurred to Venus to use Sailor Moon's crystal to light their way, so the soft, silvery beam shown before them as their tunnel descended into the earth. However, unlike the path the others took, the tunnel's floor did not turn to ice. Instead, the floor became smooth, polished black stone, and the tunnel gradually began to get taller and wider until it ended at a room with several doors leading out of it. Sailor Moon put away her crystal because a pulsing, purple light hung from the ceiling.

"This place is creepy," Sailor Moon muttered. "Are you sure we shouldn't have stayed together?"

"If they have Jupiter, she's down here, with Beryl. She's not sitting off in some useless cavern," Venus said as she looked around the room. _'I wonder which one we should take,'_ Venus thought as she stared at the five tunnels ahead of them. '_Ugh! The dungeons. That's the obvious answer, but which one leads there?'_

Sailor Moon walked forward and quipped, "Eennie-meenie-minnie-mo?"

Venus went to speak, but a cold, female laugh came from the tunnel Sailor Moon just pointed to. The senshi squeaked and ran back over to Venus, and both girls stood back to back and faced the dark, but not empty, tunnels ahead of them.

"Come out, coward!"Venus shouted, and from the tunnel, still laughing, emerged Binah. The smug general tossed her long, brunette braid over her shoulder.

"Boo," the general whispered before bursting into another bout of giggles. "Well, well. The two of you. All by your lonesome selves."

"Mercury!" Sailor Moon shouted into her communicator. "Mercury! Come in!"

'_Why isn't she responding? What if something already happened to them?'_ Venus wondered as the general paced slowly in front of them. Venus met the general's malicious gaze, which reminded Venus nothing more than a wolf eyeing its prey before it decided to attack.

"Taking your time?" Venus snapped. "How about you tell us which way to Sailor Jupiter?"

This sent the general into peals of laughter again. When she finished, and stopped walking at the entrance of the tunnel she emerged from, Binah said, in a silky voice that couldn't disguise her malicious intent, "You see, that's very funny you ask that. You see, Sailor Jupiter is here! Right now! And she brought some of her friends with her!"

From the other four tunnels emerged four figures. Venus gasped at the two tall men, who appeared to be completely made from metal. But what struck her the most was the coppery haired woman, attired in a shining, golden breast plate, and then, Sailor Jupiter herself. "Jupiter!" Venus shrieked, but the senshi did not turn to her.

"It is Sailor Jupiter!" Sailor Moon gasped as she looked at their changed friend. The senshi now wore a thick, golden metal band around her neck, which matched the shining, golden chest plate. Instead of the soft skirt fabric, Jupiter now wore a green, metal skirt trimmed in gold. She wore knee high metal leg guards that matched the skirt's design and covered a pair of knee high, brown leather boots. On her lower arms, she wore greaves that were also made of green metal, but these had elaborate gold designs covering them.

As the two senshi gawked at their changed friend, the woman with the coppery hair snapped, "As you can see, the family of Jupiter fights together again!"

"No! It's you! Alketo!" Sailor Moon gushed. _'What? She knows who they are?'_ Venus realized, but she kept her eyes on Jupiter, even as her stomach began to sink down into her feet. _'Oh no . . . Jupiter. Jupiter . . . what did they do to her?'_

Venus focused back on the woman, Alketo, when she said, in a voice that sounded as kind as the icy rocks all around them, "Oh, lovely princess, nice to see you again. I will repay you the kindness you showed us!"

Alketo drew a large, golden axe, and then, swung it at Sailor Moon. The senshi dodged the blow, and Venus took the moment to turn her attack on the coppery haired attacker. "Crescent Beam!"

The blast shot Alketo across the room that was barely larger than the average living room in a house. The coppery haired blonde hit the wall with a resounding crack, and Venus gasped as she saw the stone crumble under her blow. '_What is she? She's not human_,' Venus wondered as she turned her attack on the general, Binah.

The general thrust her green, crystal spear at Venus, who dodged under the sharp blade and kicked the woman in the stomach. As she did so, she saw the two bronze men approach her. Venus gathered her energy and shouted "Crescent Beam!"

The attack bounced off the two metal attackers and rebounded to fling Venus into the stone wall. Unlike Alketo, the wall did not crack on Venus's impact. Instead, Venus felt like her head smashed into a thousand pieces.

Her vision still starry, Venus heard Sailor Moon shout, "In the name of justice, I will punish you! You took my friend from me, now I will get her back! Moon Healing Escalation!"

The attack lit up the small, dark cave like a flare gun. The blast, aimed for Sailor Jupiter, was intercepted by the two metal soldiers. Both men shrieked, and it sounded like sheets of metal scraping across each other, and Venus felt as if the metal were scraping across her teeth.

Alketo, taking the distraction of the horrible noise to her advantage, slammed into Sailor Moon, and as Venus struggled to get to her feet, Binah came over and placed the spear against Venus's throat. "We have you right where we want you. Now Sailor Moon can give us her crystal and – "

Binah gave a surprised shout as a blast of blue fire shot down the tunnel. The attack seemed to fill the entire room with intense heat and energy before dissipating down several of the tunnels. _'What was that? Did Mars do that?'_ Venus wondered as she pushed herself to her feet again.

"Sailor Moon! Venus!" Mars shouted as she rushed into the tunnel. "_Jupiter_!"

"Mars, they did something to her!" Venus said as she ran over to Sailor Moon, who escaped Alketo during the fire attack. Only when Venus turned back to Sailor Mars did she notice the two other people with her. Mercury was hardly visible, draped over the senshi's shoulders, but the pale, blue lipped blonde man beside her didn't look familiar to Venus.

"Damn it! That stupid Kunzite can't even kill two scouts! And I thought we got rid of you a long time ago!" Binah growled as she turned to Mars and her mystery friend. Mars raised her hands up, as if to attack, and thinking the better of the situation, Binah went over, grabbed Jupiter, and disappeared.

"No!" Venus shouted, but as she went to give chase, Alketo threw her aside.

"We're not done," the woman sneered as she raised her axe. Then, another blast of blue fire smashed into Alketo, and the attack made the Jupiter warrior back away from Venus. Mars turned her attack on the two already drained metal men, who already withstood Sailor Moon's attack.

"Fire Soul!"

"Crescent Beam!"

Even though Venus could tell how weak Mars's attack was, it did its job and forced the men to retreat. To her credit, Venus caught the stunned Alketo off guard and slammed her into another wall. Even though the woman did not go unconscious, the loss of her brothers was enough to send her running.

"Thank the gods," Mars whispered. "We need to get out of here. Mercury is really hurt, and I'm on my last legs."

"Mars, who is – "

"Jadeite!" Sailor Moon squeaked. "Mars! What – "

"He's Abinar, and I have no idea, so let's get out of here! We're way in over our heads!" Mars shouted in a hoarse voice. Venus reached up and took Mercury off Mars's shoulders, and the two girls carried the unconscious senshi between them.

Abinar led the way, and soon, they found themselves crossing the barren plain of snow again. Immediately, Venus felt her legs and arms become numb. '_It's so much worse now that we've been in battle. I don't have any extra energy to protect me from this place. We need to get back. Mercury looks really bad.'_

Abinar found the open portal, and Venus and Mars, taking the unconscious Sailor Mercury with them, entered first. They tumbled out the other side, and Venus stood up, but Mars and Mercury didn't. "Come on! They need to come through!" Venus announced as she shook Mars, who moaned and crawled away from the entrance. Venus grabbed Mercury by the shoulders and pulled her away before Sailor Moon came tumbling through.

"I don't understand!" Sailor Moon exclaimed as she staggered away from the portal. "Abinar . . . Jadeite . . . what happened?"

"I told you," Mars growled, "I don't know that much. I just know what happened, okay? He said he would explain later."

Then, Abinar staggered through the portal. After he entered, he immediately turned around and closed the door. "Jad – Abinar! How did you – "

Sailor Moon's question was cut short when Abinar swayed and fell flat on the ground with a thud. Venus gasped as she dropped Mercury and went over to the unconscious man. "He's freezing!" Venus said as she felt his pulse. "Mars, we need to get you three help."

"My place," Mars whispered as she tried to drag herself to her feet. "We should stay in our scout forms. We'll heal faster with the aid of our powers. Sailor Moon, take Mercury because she's small. Venus, help me carry Abinar."

"Mars, you can barely stand!" Venus exclaimed.

"It doesn't matter. We need to get out of here," Mars hissed. "This was my stupid idea, so I'm going to help clean it up."


End file.
